Court orders arrest of PTI leader Shahbaz Gill in sedition case

ISLAMABAD: A sessions court in Islamabad on Monday ordered the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shahbaz Gill in a sedition case, Pakistan-based ARY News reported. A case was lodged against Shahbaz Gill at the Kohsar police station in Islamabad. He was accused of causing a divide in the state institution. Additional sessions judge Tahir Abbas Sepra took up sedition case against Gill.

At the outset of the hearing, the judge said the PTI leader is deliberately causing a delay in the proceedings of the case, according to ARY News report. Due to his continuous absence from the proceedings, the court ordered Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to arrest Shahbaz Gill and present him before the court if he comes to the airport in Pakistan.

The judge also ordered National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) chairman to block the Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC). In addition, the court directed concerned authorities to fix a notice of absconder at his residence in Faisalabad.

The court has also sought the property details that are under Shahbaz Gill's name in Faisalabad and Islamabad. On March 29, the Lahore High Court (LHC) permitted PTI leader Shahbaz Gill to travel to the US for four weeks, as per the ARY News report.

A three-member bench headed by the LHC chief justice heard Gill's petition filed against the inclusion of his name in the Exit Control Lists (ECL). During the court proceedings, the court permitted Gill to travel abroad for one time and ordered the exclusion of his name from ECL.

Earlier, in February, the Islamabad district and sessions court approved Shahbaz Gill's exemption plea in a sedition case, according to ARY News. According to details, the court postponed the indictment process as it heard the sedition case against Gill. This was not the first time that Gill had applied for an exemption plea.

Earlier, in August 2022, his bail petition was dismissed by a district and sessions court in Islamabad. However, Gill's counsel had said during the same hearing that the case was a misunderstanding and that the PTI chief's aide was ready to apologise.

Burhan Muazzam, Gill's co-counsel had said that Shahbaz Gill was ready to apologise as well and also asked about who gave the right to frame a sedition case against Gill, Pakistan-based Dawn reported. Gill said that the case registered against him was on a political basis and his remarks were distorted and taken in the wrong context.