PHC reserves verdict on pleas against repeated arrests

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday reserved its verdict on the writ petitions against the repeated arrests of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and former lawmakers.

Former speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser and former Member National Assembly Mujahid Ali Khan had moved the court against their repeated arrests in various cases. A two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Mohammad Ibrahim Khan and Ishtiaq Ibrahim heard the petition and reserved the judgement. 

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Advocate General Amir Javed and Additional Advocate General Danial Asad Chamkani represented the provincial government. Syed Sikandar Shah Advocate appeared for the petitioners.

When the proceedings started, Chief Justice Mohammad Ibrahim Khan asked the advocate general whether a person can be arrested multiple times in cases registered against him. The advocate general told the bench that in the light of the decisions of the superior courts if multiple cases were registered against a person at the same police station then his arrest would be considered in all cases. However, he said that if a person was nominated in cases registered against him at different police stations then he could be arrested multiple times.

He told the court that under the law, it should be determined whether one department can interfere in the jurisdiction of another one because if a person was wanted by the Federal Investigation Agency so could the police show his arrest in a case registered at a police station. He argued that the courts had given several verdicts wherein such arrests had been termed as per the law, adding that the judicial magistrates had issued the arrests warrants in all such cases. Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim said that it wasn’t necessary to inform a person about all the cases he was facing. After hearing the arguments, the court reserved its verdict.