Court accepts plea declaring Imran's sisters, PTI leaders as 'absconders'

LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court initiated the process of declaring 21 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) leaders including Aleema Khan and Uzma Khan — sisters of Imran Khan — as absconders for their "failure" to cooperate with the investigation in the May 9 violence, The News International reported on Tuesday. Informing the court, the police alleged that despite being aware of their involvement in the cases, the PTI leaders did not comply with the investigation and are currently in hiding.

The police pleaded with the court to declare them absconders.

Subsequently, the court, upon considering the police's request, commenced the process to declare Aleema Khan, Aslam Iqbal, Hammad Azhar, Farrukh Habib, Murad Saeed, Zubair Niazi, Hassaan Niazi, Ali Amin Gandapur, Azam Swati, Andleeb Abbas, Uzma Khan, and others as 'absconders', The News International reported. Meanwhile, the court extended the judicial remand of PTI leaders, including Yasmin Rashid, Ejaz Chaudhary, and former Governor of Punjab, Umar Sarfraz Cheema, as the police had failed to submit the challan against them.

The court instructed the police to submit the challan in the next hearing while further extending the judicial remand of the aforementioned PTI leaders, The News International reported.

On May 9, this year, former PM and PTI Chairman Imran Khan was arrested from inside the High Court in Islamabad by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on the charges of corruption in connection with the Al-Qadir Trust, which he owns alongside his wife, Bushra Bibi.

Following Khan's arrest, his party called for demonstrations, which turned violent at many places. The administration resorted to a crackdown and many arrests were made across the country. The people accused in the May 9 violence are being tried at military courts.