LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Tuesday adjourned the bail petitions of incarcerated PTI founding chairman Imran Khan in eight cases of May 9 riots as his lawyer sought an early decision, saying the polygraph and photogrammetric tests had no connection with the bail.

At the outset of the hearing before a two-judge bench, Barrister Salman Safdar, the counsel for Imran Khan, requested that his stance be heard first. He said the prosecution was only seeking an adjournment.

A prosecutor informed the bench that an anti-terrorism court had once again allowed polygraph and photogrammetric tests of the PTI founder. He said the accused had earlier refused to undergo these tests and was not cooperating with the investigation.

He argued that the prosecution was not seeking physical remand of the accused but wanted to complete the investigation.

Counsel seeks early verdict as polygraph test ‘irrelevant’ to bail

Barrister Safdar argued that there was no justification for conducting these tests after two years.

He claimed that no evidence had been found so far and now the prosecution was fabricating evidence through machines, which would further destroy their position.

He reiterated that the tests were irrelevant to the bail petitions.

He asked the bench to consider his client’s helplessness and decide the bail petitions without further delay.

The two-member bench comprising Justice Syed Shahbaz Ali Rizvi and Justice Tariq Mahmood Bajwa adjourned the hearing for a date to be fixed later.

An anti-terrorism court had on Nov 27, 2024 denied bail to the former prime minister in these eight cases.

The bail petitions mainly argue that the prosecution failed to establish the petitioner`s association with the unfortunate occurrences narrated in the FIRs.

They say the petitioner has been implicated in the May 9 cases as a result of a well-orchestrated plan merely to harass and humiliate him for political reasons even though admittedly he was in the custody of the NAB.

The sole allegation against the petitioner in the cases is of ‘abetment’, which has been supplemented by the prosecution most vaguely, the pleas add.

They argue that the trial judge overlooked the fact that frivolous and baseless allegations related to the May 9 events have already been rejected due to inconsistencies in the story of the investigating agency.

The petitions ask the LHC to set aside the trial court`s decision and grant bail to the former prime minister in the eight FIRs.

Published in Dawn, May 28th, 2025