LAHORE:An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Lahore on Thursday handed over Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s nephew, Shahrez Khan, to police for eight days physical remand in connection with a May 9 riots case, more than two years after his name surfaced in the investigation.Monsoon travel packages Shahrez was arrested on the evening of August 21 from his residence, According to PTI leaders, the arrest occurred late on Wednesday night when a group of unidentified individuals entered Aleema Khan’s home by force. Party officials claimed that household staff were assaulted, family members harassed, and Shahrez taken from his bedroom in front of his children.
Police later implicated him in the Jinnah House attack case through two supplementary statements filed on September 23, 2023. He was produced before ATC Judge Manzar Ali Gill, where police sought a 30-day physical remand for further investigation and recovery of material allegedly in his possession.
The defence, led by senior lawyer Salman Akram Raja, strongly contested the request, terming Shahrez’s arrest after 27 months “ridiculous”. Raja argued that the accused had no political involvement and was being “roped in without evidence”. He told the court that Shahrez had been in Chitral between May 6 and 13, 2023, and pointed out that Aleema—Shahrez’s mother—had already been discharged from the same case.
Raja further argued that “such an extensive delay in arresting someone reflects mala fide intent”.
