Court extends former Pakistan PM Imran’s interim bail in terrorism case
Imran Khan (centre) arrives to appear before the Anti-Terrorism Court in Islamabad on Thursday. AFP
A Pakistani court on Thursday extended former Prime Minister Imran Khan's pre-arrest bail for two weeks on terrorism charges relating to a speech after Khan appeared in court amid tight security, his lawyer said.
"It is not at all a case of terrorism," Faisal Chaudhry, the lawyer told Reuters of the charges, which Khan and his aides have termed politically motivated.
The bail was approved until Sept. 12, he said. The pre-arrest bail expired on Aug. 31.
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The charges against Khan are related to what police said was a threat to Islamabad police chief and a female judge after Khan spoke about police torture of an aide who faces sedition charges for inciting mutiny in the military.
Political tensions in Pakistan remain high as Khan rallies support for elections that are not due until October next year.
Khan has denied he threatened the officials, saying his words were taken out of context.
Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan arrives at the Islamabad ATC amid tight security. AFP
In his speech, Khan said he "would not spare" the Islamabad police chief and a female judge who remanded his aide to custody, adding he would take legal action against them.
Earlier, Khan was on Wednesday given an additional week to answer contempt of court charges brought against him for criticising a magistrate, officials from his party said.
The charge is another twist in months of political wrangling that began when Khan was ousted by a vote of no confidence in parliament in April.
The latest allegations stem from a speech he made criticising the magistrate responsible for keeping an official from his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party in police custody, after also claiming the official had been tortured.
On Wednesday, a PTI official said Khan had been given a week to file a fresh reply to the court notice after an initial one was rejected, and that the case would be heard again on September 8.
The country has a history of those in power using the police and courts to stifle their political opponents, and PM Sharif has several pending cases brought against him while in opposition.The political fracas comes as Pakistan deals with devastating floods caused by record monsoon rains that have left a third of the country under water and affected more than 33 million people.
