LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday dismissed the petition of a citizen who sought a judicial inquiry under the supervision of a sitting judge into the May 9 riots.Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan announced the verdict, which he had reserved a day earlier, after hearing the arguments of the petitioner’s counsel.

Dismissing the petition as not maintainable, the judge observed that the caretaker government of Punjab had lawfully constituted Joint Investigation Teams (JITs) to probe the events of May 9.

Petitioner Hassan Awais contended through his counsel that the PTI was a major political party, but its workers had been subjected to unlawful treatment in violation of fundamental rights.

He said the caretaker government in Punjab was following the instructions of the federal government of the Pakistan Democratic Movement and, therefore, justice could not be dispensed with the cases of May 9.

The petitioner pleaded that a JIT should be formed under the supervision of a sitting judge of the higher court to hold an impartial and fair investigation into the May 9 protests.

The Punjab government’s lawyer opposed the petition questioning its maintainability. He also stated that PTI Chairman Imran Khan filed a similar petition in the Supreme Court.

Published in Dawn, June 1st, 2023