After getting bail in May 9 case: Khadija Shah detained for 30 days under MPO

LAHORE: The Lahore deputy commissioner (DC) on Friday issued detention orders for fashion designer Khadija Shah for 30 days under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) ordinance in connection with the May 9 incidents.

DC Rafia Haider issued the notification, saying that Shah may disturb the law and order situation again which is why she was being detained. The decision came after the fashion designer was granted post-arrest bail in a case pertaining to the torching of police vehicles during the May 9 violence.

«Shah has been detained on the recommendations of the superintendent of police (SP) Cantt and District Intelligence Branch,» it added.

The notification also said that Shah was involved in violent protests on May 9 — the day when Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust case in Lahore.

Shah, the daughter of former finance minister Salman Shah, was accused of leading the attack on the Lahore Corps Commander›s House — also known as Jinnah House — during the May 9 mayhem. The protest led to the arrests of thousands of PTI workers across the country, with several leaders also parting ways with the party over the May 9 events.

The designer, who had been named in four cases connected to the incident, turned herself in on May 23 amid a crackdown against rioters. She was recently granted bail on November 15 in the last case of the four cases in which she was detained.

Section 3 of MPO allows the government to arrest and detain suspected persons.

«Government, if satisfied that with a view to preventing any person from acting in any manner prejudicial to public safety or the maintenance of public order, it is necessary so to do, may, by an order in writing, direct the arrest and detention in such custody as may be prescribed under sub-section (7), of such person for such period as may, subject to the other provisions of this section, be specified in the order, and government, if satisfied that for the aforesaid reasons it is necessary so to do, may extend from time to time the period of such detention for a period not exceeding six months at a time,» it states.

Meanwhile, the Kot Lakhpat Jail superintendent has formally sought permission from the Punjab Home Department to present fashion designer Khadija Shah in an anti-terrorism court. This request comes following the directives of the Lahore deputy commissioner to place Khadija Shah under a 30-day Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) order. The letter states that Khadija Shah was brought to the Kot Lakhpat Jail on May 24, 2023, as a trial prisoner in three cases registered at Lahore’s Sarwar Road police station and FIA Cyber Crime Circle, Lahore. The charges against her included terrorism and cybercrime. As per the orders issued by the deputy commissioner on November 15, 2023, the accused is to be kept in custody for a duration of 30 days. The superintendent mentions in the letter that Khadija Shah has to appear in the court of Judicial Magistrate Section 30 Imran Abid on November 25 and in the court of Anti-Terrorism Judge Abhar Gul on November 28 under the MPO. For the presentation of any detainee under Detention Rule No. 39 in a court other than the high court, permission from the Punjab Home Department is mandatory.