ATC extends interim bails of PTI members

LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore on Friday further extended the interim bail pleas of 13 PTI leaders, including former federal ministers Hammad Azhar, Shafqat Mahmood and Yasmin Rashid in a case pertaining to the alleged vandalism and damage of property during the party’s May 25 long march.

The ATC had granted interim bails to the politicians soon after issuing non-bailable arrest warrants for them last Friday (June 10).

At the outset of the hearing, Azhar, Yasmin and Aslam Iqbal appeared before the court while a plea seeking exemption from the court was presented for former education minister Shafqat Mahmood.

The counsel representing PTI leaders said that Mahmood couldn’t appear before the court due to a surgical operation he underwent today. He further stated that the police are not informing the defendants about the charges they are facing.

Meanwhile, the police told the court that some of the accused leaders have joined the investigations while some have not.

Accepting the requests for extension, the ATC granted extension in the interim bails of PTI leaders till June 28.