KARACHI: A judicial magistrate on Thursday granted bail to Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Haleem Adil She­ikh in a case related to the May 9 violence in different parts of the country.

Judicial Magistrate (Malir) Saima Katto granted him bail in a sum of Rs10,000 till Jan 11 in the case, registered at the Shachal police station under Sections 147 (rioting), 149 (unlawful assembly), 427 (causing damage), 341 (wrongful restraint) of Pakistan Penal Code.

The judge directed the police to release Mr Sheikh, who is PTI’s Karachi president and a former leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly, if his custody is not required in any other case. Police swiftly escorted him to jail as he has already been in judicial custody several other cases.A petition was submitted this week by Mr Sheikh counsel before the Sindh High Court in which he told that over 16 cases had been registered against him from Feb 16, 2021 to May 10, 2023 and nine of the cases had been registered after May 7.

Earlier, in a case of alleged rioting and criminal intimidation for hooliganism at city courts, the Judicial Magistrate (south) indicted Mr Sheikh and former PTI leader Ali Zaidi.

Published in Dawn, January 5th, 2024