LAHORE - Lahore High Court (LHC) Friday suspended the detention orders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and workers who had courted their arrests during the party’s protest movement. The court also ordered release of PTI leaders including Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Asad Umar, and workers while suspending their detention orders. Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh passed the orders while hearing a petition filed by PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry against detention of the PTI leaders and workers. The court also sought a reply from the Punjab government and other respondents by March 7. During the proceedings, Fawad's counsel argued before the court that the PTI leaders and workers voluntarily surrendered themselves to police under the court arrest movement. He submitted that all of them were political prisoners, adding that the rules were very clear about such prisoners. However, the authorities detained them, he said, adding that the step was illegal. He pleaded with the court to set aside the detention orders and order release of the leaders and workers. However, a provincial law officer opposed the plea, saying that the PTI leaders and workers themselves surrendered to police. The court, after hearing arguments, suspended the detention orders and ordered release of the PTI leaders and workers. Meanwhile, Justice Shehram Sarwar Chaudhry on Friday disposed of a petition filed by Senator Ejaz Ahmad Chaudhry for recovery of the arrested PTI leaders, after being withdrawn.
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