Maps
Magazine

LEGAL

Bailable Arrest Warrant Issued for PTI Leader Omar Ayub in Protest Case
Islamabad ATC issues bailable arrest warrant for PTI’s Omar Ayub in Oct 4 protest case. Bail canceled for absentees; next hearing on July 30. Follows string of PTI convictions tied to May 9 unrest.
ND
by News Desk
2025-07-24
Bailable Arrest Warrant Issued for PTI Leader Omar Ayub in Protest Case

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad issued a bailable arrest warrant on Thursday for National Assembly Opposition Leader and senior PTI leader Omar Ayub Khan in connection with a protest held in October 2024. The case stems from clashes between PTI activists and Islamabad police just days before the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.

ATC Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra presided over the hearing, which relates to a case registered at Shahzad Town police station. The court also cancelled previous bail for other suspects who failed to appear at the hearing.

Lawyers representing PTI leaders, including Advocates Sardar Masroof Khan, Zahid Bashir Dar, Murtaza Toori, and Mirza Asim, were present in court. The judge, however, accepted Senator Azam Swati’s exemption plea, filed a day earlier.

The court has adjourned the proceedings until July 30.

The protest in question occurred on October 4, 2024, when PTI supporters gathered at multiple locations in Islamabad, defying security blockades and rally restrictions. The demonstration led to clashes with police and resulted in the arrest of more than 100 party workers, including two sisters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

In a video statement ahead of the hearing, Advocate Masroof criticized the court proceedings for being fast-tracked. He noted that many suspects had traveled from remote areas like Azad Kashmir and Mardan without accommodations in Islamabad, highlighting concerns over fair trial practices.

“If these trials will be bulldozed in such a manner and you won’t give them a fair trial, then it will become very difficult for you to fulfil the requirements of justice,” he warned.

The development comes amid a broader crackdown on PTI leaders. This week, two separate ATCs in Lahore and Sargodha sentenced several senior PTI members to up to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in connection with the May 9, 2023, nationwide riots.

The Lahore court convicted eight PTI leaders, while acquitting six others. In Sargodha, 32 individuals were convicted, including sitting MNA Ahmad Chattha and Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Ahmed Khan Bhachar.

Additionally, Islamabad police in May filed another case over the October 4 protests, nominating top PTI leadership — including Ayub, Chairman Gohar Khan, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, and Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif — in a first information report (FIR) registered at Koral police station.

Earlier this month, a Lahore ATC declared PTI’s Hammad Azhar and Rana Shahbaz Ahmed as proclaimed offenders in two other protest-related cases involving alleged attacks on Punjab police during rallies near Minar-i-Pakistan.

Multiple other cases linked to the October 4 protest have also been filed at various police stations in Islamabad, including Noon and Ramna.

The wave of legal action against PTI leaders continues to raise questions regarding political space, due process, and the evolving nature of opposition politics in Pakistan.

 
Tagged:

PTI

Islamabad

AntiTerrorismCourt

OmarAyub

ProtestCase
Share News: