SC Grants Bail to Imran Khan in Eight May 9 Cases

ISLAMABAD (RNN TV) — In a significant relief for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, the Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday approved his bail petitions in eight separate cases linked to the May 9 riots.

The three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Yahya Afridi and comprising Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Muhammad Shafi, announced the decision while hearing Khan’s appeal against the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) earlier rejection of his bail pleas.

Back in June, the LHC had dismissed Khan’s bail applications in several cases, including those pertaining to the attack on Jinnah House in Lahore during the violent protests.

The PTI founder, incarcerated for over two years, had challenged the verdict in the apex court, arguing that the first information reports (FIRs) lacked evidence and that allegations of his involvement in the riots were baseless. His petition also stressed that he was in NAB custody at the time of the unrest, making his participation impossible. The plea further highlighted contradictions in prosecution statements, claimed mala fide intent by police, and questioned the reliability of delayed witness accounts.

During Thursday’s proceedings, CJP Afridi inquired from prosecutor Zulfiqar Naqvi about the evidence against Khan. Naqvi cited witness testimonies, photogrammetric and voice-matching tests, and WhatsApp messages, alleging Khan’s central role in the cases. However, the CJP directed the prosecutor to allow the trial court to assess the evidence rather than seeking findings from the SC at this stage.

Justice Rizvi also questioned whether authorities had conducted any further investigation after Khan’s post-arrest bail was granted on May 14, and whether he had cooperated with investigators.

Khan’s lawyer, Salman Safdar, countered that challans had not been submitted in the eight cases, and that his client had only been directly named in three FIRs while his name was absent from the remaining five.

Observing that any SC remarks on the merits could influence trial proceedings, the bench refrained from commenting further and verbally accepted Khan’s bail pleas in all eight cases.

Background on May 9 Riots
The May 9, 2023, violence erupted following Khan’s arrest from the Islamabad High Court premises in a graft case. Protesters targeted civil and military installations, including the Corps Commander’s House in Lahore and the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.

Since then, dozens of PTI leaders and workers have been granted bail, while many others remain incarcerated. Imran Khan, who was ousted from power through a no-confidence vote in April 2022, has been imprisoned since August 2023 and faces multiple cases ranging from corruption to terrorism.