BAHAWALNAGAR: The district bar association (DBA) on Thursday observed a strike against the administration for raiding the house of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leader Shaukat Mahmood Basra, arresting his lawyers and allegedly snatching his nomination papers.

On the other hand, a video statement by one of Basra’s lawyers claimed that police neither arrested them nor snatched the nomination papers.

A press release issued by the DBA on Thursday claimed that police raided the house of advocate Shaukat Mahmood Basra, former president of Haroonabad Bar, and snatched his nomination papers from his lawyers. It said the bar would observe a complete strike against this lawlessness.

The matter was highlighted on Wednesday night when PTI leader Shaukat Basra issued a video statement. A CCTV footage was also shared by Basra in which masked policemen could be seen entering his house by scaling the walls. The CCTV footage also showed broken glasses and damaged goods inside the house.

Bahawalnagar DPO Haseebullah Khan, while sharing two video clips of the former president of Fort Abbas Bar Muhammad Nisar Bajwa and his assistant Ijaz with Dawn, claimed that no lawyer was arrested or thrashed by police, nor did they snatch the nomination papers from Basra’s lawyers.

He claimed that the ‘victim card’ was being played by Basra to grab voters’ attention. He, while declaring the police raid on Basra’s house as legal, said Basra is a proclaimed offender and wanted by the police.

Posing himself as Basra’s lawyer in the video, advocate Muhammad Nisar Bajwa said that police neither took the nomination papers, nor arrested or thrashed any lawyer.

He said the nomination papers were with his assistant, Ijaz, who went to the police station in connection with a case and came back.

Assistant Ijaz verified Bajwa’s statement in his video clip.

Reacting to the administration’s point of view and over the video statement of his lawyer, Mr. Basra, through a WhatsApp call, told this correspondent that the police [allegedly] threatened his lawyer Nisar Bajwa and his assistant Ijaz to record the video statements.

He said Ijaz was not only subjected to torture, but the police also forcibly posted a May 9 condemnation message on his social media account.

DBA president Ali Syed said those arrested were released.

Bahawalnagar DC/RO Zulfiqar Ahmad said no such incident took place.

Published in Dawn, December 22nd, 2023