LAHORE; An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Lahore on Tuesday ordered the release of senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi in two May 9 cases, a day after he was acquitted.
ATC Judge Manzar Ali Gill directed the superintendent of Kot Lakhpat Jail to free Qureshi if he was not wanted in any other case. The verdict followed hearings last week and was announced on Monday.
In contrast, the court handed 10-year prison sentences to Dr Yasmin Rashid, Senator Ejaz Chaudhry, Mian Mehmood ur Rasheed, former Punjab governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema, and several others over their role in the May 9 riots.
The unrest erupted after the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan in a graft case, during which military and public installations — including the Corps Commander’s House in Lahore — were vandalised.
Thousands of PTI supporters took to the streets in May 2023, targeting civil and military facilities, including the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.
While some PTI leaders and workers later secured bail, many remain in custody. Imran Khan, ousted via a no-confidence vote in 2022, has been in jail since August 2023 and faces multiple charges ranging from corruption to terrorism.
In the Jinnah House vehicle torching case, the court sentenced Rashid, Cheema, Chaudhry, Rasheed, Ayesha Ali Bhutta, Muhammad Fahim, Niaz Ahmed, Ali Hasan, Zain Ali, Asad Ali, Bilal Wajahat, Bilal Bashir, Muhammad Qasim, Zain ul Hassan, and Hafiz Muhammad Arshad to 10 years each. Aliya Hamza and Sanam Javed were given five-year sentences. Qureshi, Abrar, Amjad, Faisal, Jamil, Saadia, and Tasneem were acquitted in the same case.
Separately, in the Shadman Police Station torching case, the court also ordered the confiscation of properties belonging to Dr Yasmin Rashid, Rasheed, Chaudhry, and Cheema. Each was fined Rs600,000, with further imprisonment in case of non-payment.
