A local court in Rawalpindi has sent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on 14-day judicial remand in a case related to the May 9 riots, including the one about an attack on GHQ, and ordered to transfer him to the Adiala Jail.
Qureshi was detained in a GHQ attack case from Adiala jail a day earlier, but he was then booked in 12 additional cases relating to the violent May 9 riots that erupted following the detention of PTI chairman Imran Khan earlier this year.
During the hearing today, the prosecutor requested that permission for inquiry be given in all 12 cases, including the attack on the GHQ, army museum, and intelligence agency office.
In the aforementioned cases, the prosecutor requested physical remand until January 2. Qureshi is also named in the case of setting fire to the Metro Bus stop.
Prosecution counsel Akram Amin requested the court for Qureshi's physical remand, stating that in a terrorist case, a remand of up to 90 days might be granted.
"We have received reports from the FIA, PEMRA, and intelligence agencies," the prosecutor explained.
The prosecution counsel submitted the video statement and Qureshi's tweets as evidence, claiming that Qureshi issued a protest call on his social media handle during the riots that erupted following the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan in a corruption case earlier this year.
The lawyer stated that it was necessary to determine whether the protest call was directed at the institutions.
According to the prosecution, the protest calls were indisputable proof of an attack on institutions.
"We need to figure out who was behind the protest call." "We have irrefutable evidence on which the arrest is based," the prosecutor insisted.
In opposition to the prosecution's plea, Qureshi's lawyer, Malik Imran, told the court that no word in the report or the PTI leader's statement could be used to launch a case against his client.
He said that a copy of the FIR was missing from the complete challan.
After hearing the arguments, the court reserved its verdict on the police's plea seeking Qureshi's physical remand in the May 9 cases.
Later, the court announced its judgment, rejecting the prosecution's request for physical remand.