LHC seeks Punjab govt’s report on Imran’s petition
By Our Staff Reporter
LAHORE, May 29: Justice Syed Shabbar Raza Rizvi of the Lahore High Court on Tuesday sought a report from the Punjab government on a petition of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf Chairman Imran Khan challenging the order that restrained him for three days from leaving the city.
The judge observed that the impugned May 26 order restraining the petitioner from leaving Lahore clearly mentioned that it would remain in force for three days. “Resultantly, the order is not in force any more as the writ petition has come up before the court on May 29. However, to rule out any ambiguity, the additional advocate-general, Punjab, is directed to seek a report from Punjab home secretary.”
Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel, Ahmad Awais, requested the court to quash the impugned order as illegal and in violation of fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution.
He said the government had issued the restraining order under section 5(1)(b) of the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960, without providing any valid reason to the petitioner.
The counsel also expressed the apprehension that the government would again issue such orders, so the present order should be declared illegal and unlawful.
Imran Khan had submitted that he and his party had been working for the rule of law and constitutional supremacy, but had been facing resistance and confrontation from the government.
He said that after March 9 when the Chief Justice of Pakistan was unconstitutionally removed, a countrywide movement was initiated by the legal fraternity, which had now become a national movement for establishing the rule of law because the civil society and political parties had joined the movement.
He contended that on May 12, the CJP had been invited to address the Sindh High Court Bar Association but he and his counsel had not been allowed to leave the Karachi airport.
He maintained that state authorities had manipulated the law and order situation in order to frustrate the function in collaboration with MQM chief Altaf Hussain, and the May 12 mayhem left over 40 people dead and more than 200 injured.
He said he and other opposition leaders had strongly condemned the act of “state terrorism” and he had publicly announced to meet the victim families, petitioner said.
But on May 27 when he reached the Allama Iqbal Airport, Lahore, to get a PIA flight for Karachi, he was restrained by police and the Civil Aviation Authority from boarding the plane, he said.
Imran Khan said that on his asking, the authorities gave him a copy of the order restraining him from leaving Lahore for three days. The case now will be taken up on June 4.
