Riots in May: Court Clears Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Convicts Several PTI Leaders Including Yasmin Rashid
In the aftermath of the May 9, 2023, riots that followed the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, several key PTI leaders have faced varying fates in the hands of the justice system.
Anti-Terrorism Courts (ATCs) in Lahore and Faisalabad have delivered their verdicts in multiple cases related to the riots, resulting in prison sentences for several PTI activists and leaders, while acquitting others, including PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi was acquitted in multiple May 9 cases by the Lahore ATC, with the court explicitly ordering his release if not held in other cases. The court found insufficient evidence against him, including failure to establish his presence at riot sites and lack of medical proof of injuries during the event.
Several PTI leaders, including Umar Sarfraz Cheema, Dr. Yasmin Rashid, Ejaz Chaudhry, and Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed, received 10-year imprisonment in Lahore cases concerning burning of police vehicles near Rahat Bakery and an attack on Shadman Police Station.
Other PTI members, such as Aliya Hamza Malik and Sanam Javed, were sentenced to 5-year terms, while over a hundred PTI workers faced convictions in another Faisalabad court case, including Omar Ayub Khan, Shibli Faraz, Hamid Raza, and Zartaj Gul receiving sentences of 10 years.
Some PTI leaders, including Junaid Afzal Sahi (3 years), Khayal Ahmad Kastro (MNA), Zain Qureshi (MNA), and former leader Fawad Chaudhry, were acquitted in various cases.
The prosecution's allegations stemmed from claims that the May 9 violence was a premeditated conspiracy hatched at Imran Khan’s residence to attack state installations during his arrest protests. The PTI has denied encouraging violence or terrorism, asserting that Khan was jailed at the time of the riots and rejecting the charges against its leaders.
The verdicts represent some of the first significant judicial outcomes related to the May 9 unrest and demonstrate a split between convicted PTI activists and acquittals of top leadership, especially Shah Mehmood Qureshi. This nuanced judicial response underscores the complex legal aftermath of these politically charged events in Pakistan.
The ATC in Faisalabad has also convicted several PTI leaders in cases related to the May 9 riots. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has disqualified several PTI legislators, including Shibli Faraz, Omar Ayub, Zartaj Gul, and Sunni Ittehad Council Chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza, due to their convictions by an ATC in Faisalabad in the cases pertaining to May 9 riots.
Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan, is currently in prison, facing charges of corruption, land fraud, and disclosure of official secrets. The ECP announced that since these individuals had been convicted by the ATC, they are disqualified and their seats have become vacant.
During the May 9, 2023, protests, demonstrators attacked military and government buildings, including the army headquarters in Rawalpindi and Jinnah House Lahore. The ATC sentenced 13 accused in the police station arson case and acquitted 12 others. In the arson and vandalism case outside Rahat Bakery, the court sentenced 7 accused and acquitted 10 others.
These court verdicts mark a significant development in the aftermath of the May 9 riots, providing a glimpse into the complex legal landscape surrounding the events and the roles of various PTI leaders.
War-and-conflicts and politics intertwined in the legal aftermath of the May 9, 2023, riots, as several key PTI leaders faced varying outcomes in the justice system, while crime-and-justice was exemplified by the sentencing of PTI activists and leaders for their roles in the riots. General-news reported that while some PTI leaders, such as Shah Mehmood Qureshi, were acquitted, others, including Umar Sarfraz Cheema, Dr. Yasmin Rashid, and Ejaz Chaudhry, received prison sentences of 10 years.
