LAHORE: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) announced on Friday its verdict in another case linked to the May 9, 2023 unrest, sentencing several senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders to long prison terms while acquitting others, including Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Lahore sentenced Dr. Yasmin Rashid, Mian Mahmood-ur-Rashid, Ijaz Chaudhry, Omar Sarfaraz Cheema, and Muhammad Shahbaz to 10 years in prison for their role in an arson case linked to the May 9 violence. ATC Judge Manzar Ali Gul announced the decision at a makeshift court in Kot Lakhpat Jail.
PTI senior leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi and 12 others, including Abdullah Badr, Mushtaq Ahmed, and Qasim Elahi, were acquitted in a separate case involving damage to a GOR gate. During the trial, 56 prosecution witnesses testified, while four individuals were declared absconders.
In earlier verdicts for related May 9 incidents, several PTI leaders, including the aforementioned officials, received 10-year sentences for torching vehicles at Jinnah House. Additional sentences were handed down, including five years each for Aliya Hamza and Sanam Javed. In contrast, Shah Mehmood Qureshi and others were acquitted in the Shadman Police Station arson case.
The violence on May 9 followed PTI founder Imran Khan’s arrest in a graft case, prompting widespread attacks on public and military sites, causing significant damage and casualties.
