Nine individuals, including former federal minister Shireen Mazari, have been formally charged in the case related to the May 9 attack on the General Headquarters (GHQ). In a separate development, senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi was transferred from Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore to Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. However, the indictment proceedings against him have been postponed.
The Rawalpindi Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) held hearings for 14 cases related to the May 9 incident. Judge Amjad Ali Shah oversaw the proceedings at Adiala Jail, where the accused were presented. The court recorded the attendance of defendants in all cases and adjourned 13 cases until January 6.
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Additionally, former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, former human rights minister Shireen Mazari, and former Punjab law minister Raja Basharat, along with other accused individuals, appeared before the court. The prosecution also filed a petition to cancel the bail of 23 accused, including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, for their repeated absences from court.
During the proceedings, the court formally indicted Shireen Mazari, Raja Rashid Khafeez, Khadim Hussain, Zakarullah, Azimullah Khan, Major Tahir Sadiq, Mehr Mohammad Javed, and Chaudhry Asif. However, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Ajmal Sabir, and Sikandar Bajwa refused to sign the charge sheet, citing incomplete evidence. The court postponed their indictment.
PTI leaders, including Fawad Chaudhry, Babar Awan, and Sheikh Rashid, met with Imran Khan after the hearing, but Imran Khan did not speak to the media. Following the session, Qureshi was transferred back to Lahore under heavy security.
In a related development, the Islamabad Anti-Terrorism Court adjourned cases related to PTI leaders’ involvement in protests and vandalism without proceeding further. These cases include those registered at the I-9, Khanna, and Bara Kaho police stations, with hearings postponed until January 6, 8, and 13, respectively.
