Pak court reserves verdict on Imran’s plea against arrest

The Lahore High Court (LHC) yesterday reserved its verdict on former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan's plea against his arrest in any case registered on or after May 9, when he was arrested from the premises of the Islamabad High Court in the Al-Qadir Trust case.

The petition, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, named the Punjab inspector general and the state through the Punjab advocate general as respondents.

The plea called on the court to direct the Punjab inspector general to provide a fresh report regarding the registration of "undisclosed/new FIRs" in Lahore on or after May 9.

It also called on the court to give Imran "protection of law" and to bar the respondents from arresting the PTI chief in any new criminal case registered on or subsequent to May 9 without the court's prior permission.

Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) extended bails of Imran in two cases — one pertaining to allegations against top officers of state institutions and the other on the manhandling of PML-N leader Mohsin Ranjha by party workers — until June 8.

In a video message on Twitter yesterday, Imran lamented that his supporters, including women, were being tormented in a manner never seen before.

He said that fear was being spread among the public to oppress them as he likened the situation in the country today to the atrocities during the rule of Genghis Khan.

He called on the people to take to the streets and hold peaceful protests whenever a call is given by the PTI.