ISLAMABAD: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) of Islamabad on Friday issued perpetual warrants of arrest against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan and the chairman of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) Tahirul Qadri in the case related to an attack on a senior police officer during the 2014 sit-ins.

ATC judge Sohail Ikram issued the perpetual arrest warrants after the police submitted a report stating that the suspects could not be arrested despite issuing the proclamation.

On Sept 1, 2014 during the sit-ins, Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Asmatullah Junejo was beaten up by protestors on Constitution Avenue on the first day on the job as SSP Operations of the capital police.

The Secretariat police had registered a case against several PTI and PAT workers for their alleged involvement in vandalism and attacking SSP Junejo.

The ATC had issued warrants for Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri with directions to the police to produce them before the court. The police told that ATC that the execution of the arrest warrants against the two politicians could not take place as they were not found at their residence.

The police also submitted a report before the ATC, saying that a police party went to the residence of Imran Khan in Bani Gala where a security guard informed them that Khan was not at home and that he did not know where he was.

A similar report was also submitted with regards to PAT Chairman Tahirul Qadri.

The ATC then allowed an application by the capital police seeking the initiation of proclamation proceedings against the PTI and PAT chiefs in the Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) Asmatullah Janjejo attack case after the station house officer Secretariat police informed the court that the suspects could not be located and arrested despite obtaining arrest warrants against them.

With the court’s permission, the police initiated proceedings under section 87- for the proclamation for person absconding- of the Criminal Procedure Code against Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri, as they did not appear before the court in the case.

Published in Dawn, February 4th, 2017