Court orders arrest of Gandapur in arms, liquor case

ISLAMABAD: Civil Judge Mubashir Hussain on Wednesday directed the Islamabad police to execute arrest warrants issued for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur in connection with a 2016 case in which he is accused of carrying liquor and unlicenced weapons.

The court instructed the Islamabad SSP operations to ensure compliance with the court’s order to arrest the PTI leader and provincial chief minister.

During the hearing, a report regarding CM Gandapur’s arrest warrants was submitted to the court. The report stated that the police had not executed the arrest warrants for the chief minister.

Frustrated by Gandapur’s continued non-appearance, the court upheld the non-bailable arrest warrants and ordered the authorities concerned to produce the chief minister after taking him into custody.

The court then adjourned the hearing until October 26.

Earlier this month, Judicial Magistrate Mubashir Hussain Chishti had issued non-bailable arrest warrants for the KP CM in the arms and liquor recovery case.

A case was lodged against the PTI leader after the alleged recovery of five Kalashnikov rifles, a pistol, six magazines, a bullet-proof vest, three teargas shells, and bottles of alcohol in October 2016.

At the time, Gandapur was serving as a provincial minister in KP and was charged under illegal arms and anti-drug laws following the alleged recovery of illicit arms and alcohol from his vehicle.

On March 7 of this year, a local court had overturned the trial court’s order declaring Gandapur a “proclaimed offender” in the case registered against him at Bhara Kahu police station.

Previously, a trial court had declared Gandapur an absconder for evading the law in the case.

District and Sessions Court Judge Shahrukh Arjumand had nullified the trial court’s order after reviewing a petition filed by Gandapur’s legal team.

The petitioner’s lawyer had informed the court that Gandapur had been unable to attend court due to his official duties as the newly appointed KP chief minister. He had requested the court to exempt Gandapur from attending the proceedings that day.

The lawyer had argued that Gandapur had been declared a proclaimed absconder because he had continuously missed court hearings. He had further claimed that Gandapur had not received the court summons due to non-compliance by the process server responsible for delivering the legal documents.

Accepting the request, the sessions judge had instructed Gandapur’s lawyer to submit surety bonds worth Rs50,000 on his behalf and present a local guarantor.

The case was then remanded back to the trial court, with the sessions court overturning the previous order declaring Gandapur an absconder.