Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been given immediate parole by the LHC. Shah Mehmood Qureshi, vice chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), who was detained in the wake of the violent protests on May 9, was ordered to be released right away by the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday.
Since his initial detention, former foreign minister Qureshi has been detained several times.
The Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance (MPO) should no longer be used to detain Qureshi, the LHC’s Rawalpindi Bench said after hearing a petition challenging his detention.
The hearing was presided over by Justice Chaudhry Abdul Aziz.
The court also ruled that the MPO orders issued by the deputy commissioner of Rawalpindi were unconstitutional and ordered the PTI vice chairman’s immediate release without the requirement that he provide surety bonds.
While lawyer Taimoor Malik and Qureshi’s daughter were present on behalf of the PTI leader, Assistant Attorney General Abid Aziz Rajouri represented the government.
Parvez Elahi receives protective bail through May 15 from the LHC.
Inquiring into whether Qureshi had made any remarks or organised any protests during the hearing, the court queried the law officer.
The court commented that “no political leader can control his words in a political gathering,” and instructed the law officer to produce whatever evidence the former foreign minister may have.
The official requested two days at this point for the evidence to be submitted.
On the other hand, the court ordered him to inform the court of any new information within an hour of receiving government instructions.
After that, the hearing was postponed for an hour by the court.
A report on the allegations against Qureshi was released by the Punjab police in the meantime.
According to the report, Qureshi is the subject of nine cases around Punjab. Five of these crimes are recorded at various police stations in Multan, while four of these cases are registered in Lahore.
The daughter of the PTI leader asked for the report to be presented.
It should be recalled that numerous prominent PTI leaders were detained when demonstrations broke out in response to the detention of PTI Chairman Imran Khan on May 9.
After his arrest on corruption accusations, there were at least eight fatalities in fights between PTI supporters and police enforcement.
Along with Qureshi, notable PTI figures Asad Umar, Shireen Mazari, Fawad Chaudhry, and Yasmeen Rashid were also detained.
Some of the leaders, like Umar, Mazari, and Chaudhry, were, however, freed. As a result of the violent protests, several of them have also left the party and broken up their relationships with the former prime minister.
