A Lahore court has issued Imran Khan arrest warrants along with non-bailable warrants for Senate opposition leader Shibli Faraz. The orders were passed on Friday in a case connected to an alleged assault on Islamabad police officers stationed outside Imran Khan’s Zaman Park residence.
The case was filed at Race Course police station after violent clashes erupted between PTI supporters and law enforcement. The former prime minister, removed from power through a no-confidence vote in April 2022, is already facing several charges ranging from corruption to terrorism.
Imran Khan has remained in prison since August 2023 following convictions in multiple cases. During Friday’s hearing at Lahore’s Cantt Kutchery, the court summoned him through Adiala Jail authorities as he is currently incarcerated in Rawalpindi. Proceedings were adjourned until July 30.
The fresh Imran Khan arrest warrants come amid recent anti-terrorism court decisions handing heavy sentences to senior PTI leaders over the May 9, 2023, riots. On Tuesday, an ATC sentenced Dr. Yasmin Rashid and Mian Mehmood ur Rasheed to 10 years in prison each for their involvement in the case.
Other leaders, including former Punjab governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema, PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry, and Afzal Azeem Pahat, were also convicted in the same trial. However, the court acquitted Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Hamza Azeem Pahat, Rana Tanveer, and Aizaz Rafiq.
On the same day, the ATC in Sargodha awarded 10-year jail terms to Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Ahmed Khan Bachar, MNA Mohammad Ahmed Chattha, and several PTI activists for vandalism during the May 9 riots. The Imran Khan arrest warrants highlight the deepening legal troubles of the PTI founder and his close aides as cases linked to the May 9 violence continue to unfold.
