 in Rawalpindi has handed down severe punishments for the May 9 GHQ attack case, sentencing 47 individuals t...){kind=link}
RAWALPINDI – An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Rawalpindi has handed down severe punishments for the May 9 GHQ attack case, sentencing 47 individuals to ten years in prison. Among those convicted are prominent figures from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), including Omar Ayub and Shibli Faraz.
The ATC judge, Amjad Ali Shah, also imposed a fine of Rs 500,000 on each convict and ordered the confiscation of their properties. Convicted individuals include Omar Ayub, Zartaj Gul, Murad Saeed, Hammad Azhar, Kanwal Shauzab, Rashid Shafiq, Shahbaz Gill, Zulfi Bukhari, Muhammad Ahmad Chatha, Rai Hassan Nawaz, and Rai Muhammad Murtaza.
Additional convicts given jail terms and fines include Shaukat Ali Bhatti, Usman Saeed Basra, and Ijaz Khan Jazi. The verdict reveals that the convicted individuals were found involved in attacks on GHQ gate, Hamza Camp, and Army Museum during the riots of May 9.
According to the court’s statement, the suspects were identified as the main accused who planned violent protests. They are charged with arson, vandalism, attacking police, and damaging government property. The JIT report had earlier named these suspects as central figures in orchestrating the unrest.
In its verdict, the ATC stated that 44 prosecution witnesses have been heard during the trial. A separate inquiry found that out of 118 accused individuals, only 118 appeared before the court regularly and cooperated with the proceedings. Eighteen remaining suspects never appeared after the case was initiated.
The ATC noted a notable absence of eight PTI leaders—Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi—and other high-profile figures in the subsequent hearing for those who failed to appear, including Shibli Faraz, Zartaj Gul, Murad Saeed, Hammad Azhar, Kanwal Shauzab, Rashid Shafiq, and others.
The prosecution filed a request for action against these proclaimed offenders on January 6. Following the ATC’s directive, an inquiry was formed and notice issued to the eight individuals who did not show up in court after registration of the case.
Despite repeated warnings by the court, no accused appeared at their trial. The ATC appointed a state counsel to represent the absentees and recorded statements from nineteen witnesses on behalf of the prosecution. During this period, the state counsel conducted cross-examinations to challenge the prosecution’s testimonies.
After concluding the trial for the eight absconding individuals, the court announced its verdict, sentencing all convicts to ten years in prison, imposing fines of Rs 500,000 each, and ordering the confiscation of their properties.