ATC acquits Qureshi, hands 10-year jail terms to Yasmin Rashid, Ejaz Chaudhry and others in May 9 case

Lahore (Web Desk): An anti-terrorism court in Lahore on Tuesday acquitted PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi but sentenced several other senior members of the party, including Yasmin Rashid and Ejaz Chaudhry, to ten years in prison in connection with the May 9 riots at Rahat Bakery Chowk.

The verdict, announced by Judge Manzar Ali Gul during proceedings held inside Kot Lakhpat Jail, related to the arson attack on a Supreme Court judge’s vehicle during the unrest.

Mian Mehmood-ur-Rasheed and Umar Sarfraz Cheema were also given ten-year sentences, while Khadija Shah received a five-year jail term. Rubina Jameel and Afshan Tariq, however, were acquitted in the same case.

The decision is part of a broader wave of legal challenges facing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf as many of its leaders have already been jailed over the May 9 incidents, while others, including party founder Imran Khan, remain imprisoned on multiple charges.

Recently, the Election Commission of Pakistan disqualified several PTI lawmakers, including opposition leaders Senator Shibli Faraz and Omar Ayub Khan, after their convictions under similar cases. That development followed an earlier ruling by an ATC in Faisalabad, which imposed ten-year prison terms on Omar Ayub, Shibli Faraz, Zartaj Gul and others for their alleged involvement in attacks on Civil Lines Police Station after Khan’s arrest.

The violent protests erupted following the detention of the former prime minister from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) premises in a corruption case. Demonstrators attacked state property and military sites, including the Corps Commander House in Lahore and the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.

While a number of party activists and leaders later secured bail, many continue to face imprisonment as trials connected to the events of May 9, 2023, proceed.