ISLAMABAD: A local court on Wednesday handed over the custody of former interior minister and Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, who has been incarcerating in Adiala jail, to Murree police in a case registered against him for threatening police personnel.

Murree Police filed an application seeking his custody on transit remand.

The duty magistrate Riffat Mehmood Khan approved the transitory remand and directed officials to produce Rashid before the relevant court on Thursday.

During the course of hearing, Rashid took the rostrum and said that the case against him was false and frivolous.

He informed the court that he had handed over passwords of his both mobiles to police and the Murree police have already interrogated him.

Counsel for Rashid argued that the former minister was in the custody of the police and he was subsequently remanded into judicial custody.

According to him, the government lodged FIRs against Rashid for political reasons.

He requested the court to dismiss the request of Murree police seeking Rashid’s custody.

Rashid was initially arrested on Feb 2 for accusing former president Asif Ali Zardari of hatching conspiracy to kill PTI chairman Imran Khan.

On Feb 3, the Murree police registered a case against him for threatening the police officials.

The FIR against him was registered under Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Pakistan, charging Rashid with interfering in official affairs and resisting his arrest. The FIR states that the former minister physically pushed and abused the police officers and threatened them with serious consequences at gunpoint.

The FIR was registered under three sections 120B, 153A and 505 of the Pakistan Penal Code. A case had also been registered against Rashid in Karachi for using “filthy” language against Bilawal.

Talking to the mediapersons, Rashid said that during the investigation, he was not being probed in connection with the FIRs lodged against him.

He said that the investigators appeared to be more interested in political gossips.

He said that three unknown people visited him in Adiala jail and the staff blindfolds him when these people came. He accused the Aabpara police of dragging him in the frivolous cases saying that the police of Sindh and Balochistan are “innocent”.

Rashid claimed that the certain quarters have decided to disqualify Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan.

He further claimed that efforts are being made to divide the PTI and he is being forced to part ways with Imran Khan.

Rashid predicted that the government had planned to hold elections for provincial and national assemblies simultaneously.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2023