LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday rejected former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s bail petitions in eight separate cases linked to the May 9, 2023 riots, including the attack on the Corps Commander House in Lahore, also known as Jinnah House.
A two-member bench, headed by Justice Shahbaz Rizvi, announced the reserved verdict after hearing arguments from both Imran Khan’s legal team and the government representatives.
The PTI founder had filed bail applications in connection with several cases registered after violent protests broke out across the country following his arrest in a corruption case on May 9 last year.
These protests turned into riots, targeting public and military properties such as the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and Jinnah House in Lahore. The unrest followed his dramatic arrest from the Islamabad High Court premises.
The eight cases in which bail was denied include the Jinnah House attack case, Shadman police station attack, Askari Tower incident, and arson cases in Mughalpura, outside Jinnah House, at Sherpao Bridge, Rahat Bakery, and in the Zaman Park area.
Earlier, in November 2024, an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) had also dismissed Imran Khan’s bail applications in the same cases.
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Following Tuesday’s verdict, several PTI-affiliated lawyers protested inside the courtroom. Tight security arrangements were in place, and unrelated individuals were removed from the courtroom before the hearing.
Imran Khan was removed from office in April 2022 through a no-confidence vote. Since then, he has faced several legal cases, including charges of corruption, terrorism, and inciting violence. He has been in jail since August 2023 after being convicted in multiple cases before the February 8 general elections. Although some PTI leaders and workers arrested in connection with the May 9 riots have been granted bail, many others are still in jail.
