An Islamabad anti-terrorism court (ATC) has ordered the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to block the passports of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and 23 other Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers in a case registered at Kohsar police station. ATC Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain approved an application filed by the investigating officer and directed the FIA to keep the passports blocked until further orders. The police had requested the court to block the passports of 24 PTI members of the National and provincial assemblies nominated in the case. The lawmakers include KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, Asad Qaiser, Shahram Khan Tarakai, Shah Ahad, Sher Ali Arbab, Muhammad Iqbal Afridi and Dr Amjad Ali. Junaid Akbar, Shahid Khattak, Zubair Wazir, Umar Ayub, Arshad Umarzai, Zar Alam, Mian Umar and Akhtar Khan are also among those whose passports have been ordered blocked. The list further includes Humayun Khan, Riaz Khan, Abdul Kabir Khan, Tufail Anjum, Asif Mehsud, Ajab Gul, Muhammad Usman and Babar Saleem Swati. The court also ordered the passports of Irfan Saleem, Advocate Ali Zaman and Malik Shahab to be blocked. In its order, the court said the available record showed that the 24 individuals were nominated accused in the case. According to the investigating officer, the accused could flee the country to avoid legal proceedings. The police also alleged that they were facing serious charges, including attacks on state institutions and promoting terrorism. The court noted that the accused had also failed to appear before it. It further observed that even those who had obtained interim bail had not joined the investigation. The court consequently accepted the investigating officer’s request and directed the FIA to block the passports of the accused until further orders.
Court orders passports blocked of Sohail Afridi, 23 other PTI lawmakers
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