Lahore, September 3, 2025: An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore on Wednesday granted bail to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s nephew, Shahrez Khan, in a case linked to the Jinnah House attack during the May 9, 2023 riots.
ATC Judge Manzer Ali Gill announced the reserved verdict on Shahrez’s bail plea, ordering his release on a surety bond of Rs100,000. His lawyer, Advocate Rana Mudassar, confirmed the decision, while PTI’s legal representative Taimur Malik also welcomed the ruling.
Shahrez, son of Imran Khan’s sister Aleema Khan, was arrested by Lahore police on August 21 from his mother’s residence. His brother, Shershah Khan, was also taken into custody the following day on similar charges and later remanded to jail. On August 30, Shahrez was sent on a 14-day judicial remand.
During Wednesday’s hearing, Advocate Mudassar argued that Shahrez, a professional athlete, was accused without evidence. He pointed out that despite geo-fencing and multiple lines of investigation, Shahrez’s name was missing from the challan, no witness statements implicated him, and affidavits confirmed he was in Chitral at the time of the riots.
“This arrest came after 28 months and appears politically motivated,” the lawyer said, stressing that Shahrez had been preparing to travel abroad for a sports event. His wife also claimed he was in Chitral with her family on May 9, 2023, sharing photographs as proof.
The PTI has challenged a video circulating on social media, clarifying it was from the party’s Kahna public meeting on September 21, 2024, not from the 2023 riots.
Both Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) had earlier expressed concern over the arrests, with Amnesty calling them part of a “political witch-hunt.”
In contrast, Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry defended the crackdown, rejecting claims that the arrests were “fake, fabricated, or politically motivated.”
The May 9 riots erupted after Imran Khan’s arrest, during which PTI supporters vandalised military installations, government buildings, and notably, the Lahore corps commander’s residence known as Jinnah House. The state responded with a sweeping crackdown on PTI, leading to the arrest of thousands of supporters and senior leaders. Many have since been convicted and disqualified from parliamentary roles.
