Pakistan: 9 PML-N lawmakers get interim bail in Punjab Assembly ruckus case

Lahore [Pakistan], September 4 (ANI): A sessions court in Pakistan has granted interim pre-arrest bail to the nine Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) members, in relation to the ruckus created at the Punjab Assembly election, earlier this year, local media reported on Sunday.
The Members of the Punjab Assembly on Saturday appeared before the court to seek bail, according to the Dawn newspaper.
The MPAs include — Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan, Saiful Malook, Rukhsana Kausar, Mirza Javed, Khizar Khagha, Raja Sagheer Ahmad, Ghulam Habib Awan, Awais Leghari and Mian Rauf.
However, the court allowed the petitions for the interim bail till September 14 subject to the furnishing of surety bonds.
Last month, a Lahore court issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against 12 PML-N leaders including Pakistan Prime Minister’s special assistant Attaullah Tarar.
The move comes weeks after PTI ally PML-Q’s Parvez Elahi took charge as Chief Minister.
The first information report of the incident was registered the same day at Qila Gujjar Singh Police Station under sections 324 (murder attempt), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 186 (obstructing public service) and 427 (causing damage), the Dawn had reported.
“The investigation has to be conducted and processed after arresting the leaders,” the police said in a letter to the magistrate.
The police officer told the judge that despite a case being registered against them, the PML-N leaders have knowingly refused to show up for the investigation. The judge then approved the arrest warrants of the politicians.
The police had moved against Atta Tarar, a ‘blue-eyed’ associate of former chief minister Hamza Shehbaz in the same case, the Dawn reported.
A police team raided both PML-N leaders’ residences in the city but returned empty-handed as the suspects were in the capital.
The Dawn earlier reported that the PML-N leaders have flown off to the “safer confines” of Islamabad, where their party is in power, to evade arrest.
In response, former chief minister Hamza condemned the arrest warrants and said that the raids conducted by the police at the residence of the PML-N leaders depicted a “dictatorial” mindset.
The PTI-PML-Q lawmakers threw plastic ‘lotas’ at him, while some of them assaulted him, dragging him by his hair and even thrashing him, the Dawn reported.
The assembly guards rescued Mazari and took him back to his chamber as the protesting PTI and PML-Q MPAs broke the speaker’s chair, microphone and a side table, and threw around various articles, including files, in the house. The mayhem lasted for around five hours. (ANI)