LHC grants protective bail to Imran Khan in eight cases

LAHORE – The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday granted protective bail to former prime minister Imran Khan in multiple cases registered against him. 

A two-member bench comprising Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh and Justice Farooq Haider issued the ruling after the PTI chief appeared before court to seek bail in nine cases. 

The bench has granted bail to the defiant politician till Friday five cases registered in Islamabad for seven days while 10-day bail approved in three cases registered in Lahore. However, the plea for protective bail in Toshakhana case became ineffective as the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has suspended arrest warrants against him till tomorrow.  

During the hearing, Justice Sheikh while referring to Zaman Park clashes said the case was handled from Imran Khan's side. He added that rules of business should be followed to avoid such situations.

At one point, Imran Khan said 94 cases had been registered against him. 

Earlier, the PTI chief reached the high court along with a large number of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf supporters while the government had taken strict security measures. 

عمران خان کے لاہور ہائیکورٹ روانگی کے مناظر pic.twitter.com/8E8lqEeyPK

— PTI (@PTIofficial) March 17, 2023

will hear the bail petitions filed against the cases that are lodged under terrorism sections.

Earlier today, the Punjab government and PTI reached an agreement to resolve the Zaman Park crisis and to reschedule the latter's Mina-e-Pakistan rally. According to the agreement, which will be submitted to the court, PTI will cooperate with police for the execution of arrest warrants and search warrants. SSP Imran Kishore will be the focal person from police, while Shibli Faraz and Ali Khan will represent their party, reports in local media suggest.

The Lahore High Court had ordered the two parties to find an amicable solution by 3pm.

Earlier this week, Zaman Park became the battleground between Khan's supporters and the security forces for nearly two days over Islamabad Police's attempt to arrest him.

This is a developing story