RAWALPINDI: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Rawalpindi on Saturday convicted 47 persons, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders Omar Ayub, Zartaj Gul, Murad Saeed, Shibli Faraz, Shehbaz Gill, and Hammad Azhar, to 10 years of imprisonment each in a case related to the May 9 riots.
ATC Judge Amjad Ali Shah also found Kanwal Shuzaib, Rashid Shafiq, Zulfi Bukhari, Muhammad Ahmed Chatha, Rai Hassan Nawaz, Rai Muhammad Murtaza, Shaukat Ali Bhatti, Usman Saeed Basra, and Ijaz Khan guilty of being the central conspirators in the May 9 incidents.
All the accused were declared proclaimed offenders during the previous hearings.
The ATC ruled that the convicted individuals were involved in attacks on key military installations, including the GHQ Gate, Hamza Camp, and the Army Museum.
ATC Judge Shah imposed a fine of Rs. 500,000 each, with the court also ordering the confiscation of their property.
The court held the accused responsible for organizing violent protests, arson, vandalism, attacks on police, and damage to government property.
The case originally involved 118 accused, including PTI founder Imran Khan and senior leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who were formally charged in December 2024. During the trial, statements from 44 prosecution witnesses have been recorded.
Eighteen of the 118 accused remained consistently absent during the trial, while 29 never appeared in court after the case was registered. Under the Anti-Terrorism Act, a separate trial was conducted for the 47 declared absconders.
May 9 riots
Thousands of supporters of Imran Khan stormed public property and military installations, including the Corps Commander House in Lahore, on May 9, 2023, in protest against the former premier’s arrest.
The riots erupted after the PTI founder was taken into custody from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a graft case.
During the unrest, the supporters of Khan — the only prime minister in Pakistan’s history to be ousted via a no-confidence vote — targeted civil and military installations, including the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.
