FAISALABAD: A Faisalabad Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Friday sent Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Chairman Sahibzada Mohammad Hamid Raza to jail to serve a 10-year prison sentence in connection with the violent protests that erupted across Pakistan on May 9, 2023, following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Hamid Raza who had earlier been convicted alongside several PTI leaders on July 31 was taken into custody by Islamabad police earlier in the day while en route to Faisalabad, reportedly to surrender before the court.
According to court documents, Hamid Raza was presented before the ATC by Inspector Mujahid Iqbal of Civil Lines police and was formally handed over to the superintendent of Faisalabad Central Jail for completion of his sentence.
The court order stated that Raza had been sentenced on multiple counts, with the maximum term being 10 years, and that all prison terms would run concurrently. The court also extended the benefit of Section 382-B of the Criminal Procedure Code, allowing his pre-trial detention period to count toward his sentence.
The Faisalabad Central Jail superintendent is required and authorised to receive the convict in custody for completion of his sentence in accordance with law, the order read.
Earlier in the day, Hamid Raza’s brother Sahibzada Hassan Raza told reporters that the SIC chief had been detained by Islamabad police near the Islamabad bypass while traveling from Peshawar to Faisalabad to voluntarily surrender.
He was travelling from Peshawar to Faisalabad to surrender. Islamabad police arrested him,” Hassan said outside the Faisalabad ATC. The development was also confirmed via Raza’s official account on X (formerly Twitter), which cited Hassan’s statement and condemned the arrest.
PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub Khan also reacted strongly, calling the arrest an abduction. Sahibzada Hamid Raza sahib, my dear friend and colleague, has been abducted from Islamabad whilst en route to surrender in the conviction awarded by an ATC Faisalabad, Ayub said. He is a brave and loyal ally of Imran Khan. He must be produced immediately before the relevant court, he added.
The case stems from the May 9, 2023 protests, which turned violent after the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan. The demonstrations resulted in attacks on public property and sensitive installations, leading to a widespread crackdown across the country.
Thousands of PTI workers and leaders were arrested in the aftermath. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) subsequently revoked PTI’s election symbol the cricket bat ahead of the 2024 elections, forcing its candidates to contest independently. The Sunni Ittehad Council later formed an alliance with PTI to claim reserved parliamentary seats, which are allotted on a party basis.
Hamid Raza’s conviction led to his disqualification from the National Assembly by the ECP. Following Friday’s court order, his brother Hassan said the family would move court to seek a stay order against any election for the vacated seat.
The development comes just two days after the Peshawar High Court rejected Hamid Raza’s plea for transit bail in the same case.