Fawad Chaudhry sent to Adiala Jail on 14-day judicial remand

• Court sent Fawad Chaudhry to Adiala Jail on judicial remand
• ECP lawyer said police have yet to make recoveries from the accused
• He is accused of citing the public against the ECP

A local court of Islamabad on Friday sent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s leader Chaudhry Fawad Hussain to the Adiala Jail on judicial remand in a case of inciting the public to violence against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

Islamabad Police produced the accused before the court of Judicial Magistrate Waqas Ahmed Raja at the end of his physical remand time and requested seven days more physical remand.

The prosecutor informed the court that the accused’s voice had been matched and there was a need to conduct his photogrammetric test from Lahore. The threatening words used by him were for the Chief Election Commissioner and the caretaker Punjab chief minister.

He said the police had yet to make recoveries from the accused and for that his further physical remand was required. Practically the prosecution was granted a one-day physical remand of the accused.

The ECP’s lawyer said the statement of the accused was on record and he had also admitted it in court. He had tried to spread hatred against the ECP and used objectionable words against it to pressurise a constitutional institution.

He said Fawad was a senior politician but no one was above the law. It was necessary to search his house in his presence. Other persons were also involved in the matter as a targeted campaign was underway against CEC, he added.

“Fawad’s statement is not one person’s statement but an entire group’s narrative,” the ECP lawyer said. “A campaign has not only been launched against the ECP but also the top officials of the election commission.”

Defence lawyer Dr Babar Awan accused the election commission of colluding with the government against PTI.  He said the complainant in the case was a government servant who are not part of provincial and federal governments.

It was the responsibility of the ECP was to conduct elections, he added. He said Fawad was not a terrorist and prayed the court to quash the first information report.

During the hearing, the court directed the police to uncuff the accused and reserved its judgment. Later, it ordered to send the accused to jail on judicial remand.

Fawad also held a meeting with his family members on the occasion. Later the court sent Fawad to judicial remand instead of physical remand.

The court on Wednesday granted police an initial two-day physical remand of Fawad, hours after he was arrested and brought from Lahore.

The former information minister was taken into custody after a first information report (FIR) against him was registered at Islamabad’s Kohsar police station.

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