ATC orders blocking of 24 PTI leaders’ passports in Nov 26 protest case

• Suspects could flee country to evade proceedings: ATC
• Judge says interim bail holders failed to join investigation.
• FIA directed to block passports until further orders.
  

An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Islamabad has ordered the blocking of passports for 24 PTI leaders, including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, Omar Ayub, and Asad Qaiser, in a case related to the violent protest on November 26, 2024.

Several PTI leaders and workers were nominated in connection with the protest, which sought to put pressure on the government to release jailed party founder Imran Khan in November 2024.

The 71-year-old cricketer-turned-politician has been behind bars since August 2023 after being booked in multiple cases, ranging from corruption to terrorism, following his ouster from power through the opposition’s no-confidence motion in April 2022.

During Monday’s hearing, ATC Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain observed that available records showed that the accused had been nominated in the case. The investigating officer told the court that the suspects could flee the country to evade legal proceedings.

The court observed that the accused face serious allegations, including attacks on state institutions and the promotion of terrorism. It also noted that the accused had failed to appear before the court, while those who had obtained interim bail had also not joined the investigation.

The court accepted the investigating officer’s request to block the accused persons’ passports and directed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to block them until further orders.

The order also covered lawmakers Shehram Tarakai, Shah Ahmed, Sher Ali Arbab, Muhammad Iqbal Afridi, Dr Amjad Ali, Junaid Akbar, Shahid Khattak and Zubair Wazir.

Other individuals whose passports are to be blocked under the court’s order include Arshad Umarzai, Zar Alam, Mian Umar, Akhtar Khan, Humayun Khan, Riaz Khan, Abdul Kabir Khan, Tufail Anjum, Asif Mehsud, Ajab Gul, Muhammad Usman, Babar Saleem Swati, Irfan Saleem, Advocate Ali Zaman and Malik Shahab.