ISLAMABAD: An Islamabad district and sessions court rejected on Wednesday a request by the capital police for yet another extension of seven days in the physical remand of PTI leader Shahbaz Gill, who has been booked and arrested on charges of sedition and inciting mutiny in the army following his controversial remarks on ARY News.
The judgement comes as the two-day period of Gill’s remand — initially approved last Wednesday — expired, much later than the scheduled date as the court concluded at previous hearings that the remand began late and as such remained incomplete.
The judgement was issued by Judicial Magistrate Malik Aman, who sent Gill on judicial remand.
According to the court order, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the completion of every investigation without unnecessary delay was the requirement of every law and the police were bound to submit the investigation report in court.
“If the investigation is not completed in the stipulated period of 14 days from the date of recording of the FIR then the officer-in-charge of the police station, within 3 days of the expiration of such period, forward to magistrate through the prosecutor an interim report stating therein the investigation till that extent.”
It stated that in Gill’s case, despite the lapse of 15 days, neither the interim nor the complete report was presented by the prosecution.
“Physical remand cannot be granted repeatedly, for the same purpose, without any positive progress,” it ruled, sending Gill to the judicial lock up.
The magistrate instructed the police to produce him before the court on September 7.
The saga of Gill’s remand
Gill was arrested on August 9 under Sections 34 (common intention), 109 (abetment), 120 (concealing design to commit offence punishable with imprisonment), 121 (waging war against state), 124-A (sedition), 131 (abetting mutiny, or attempt to seduce a soldier, sailor or airman from his duty), 153 (provoking to cause riot), 505 (statement conducing to public mischief) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).
Later, Dawn reported that Section 201 of the PPC — causing disappearance of evidence of offence or giving false information to screen offender — was added to the FIR.
A day after his arrest, an Islamabad district and sessions court had granted police a two-day physical remand of the PTI leader.
Two days later, police had sought an extension in the remand but the court had turned down the request and sent Gill on a judicial remand instead.
Police had then filed a review petition against the rejection of their application the same day. However, this appeal was also rejected and subsequently, Islamabad Advocate General Jahangir Khan Jadoon moved the Islamabad High Court (IHC) for Gill’s physical remand.
On August 16, the IHC had referred the matter back to the trial court and later that day, a judicial magistrate had approved Gill’s two-day physical remand in police custody. However, it was only two hours after the court’s ruling that Islamabad police were able to take Gill’s custody.
Gill claims he was ‘force-fed’
Judicial Magistrate Malik Aman presided over today’s hearing during which Gill took the stand and asked the judge to see all that has been happening with him.
The judge asked Gill whether he had gotten himself examined by doctors. The PTI leader replied that he had been on a hunger strike since last night and was not being allowed to meet anyone.
He claimed that six to seven people had also tried to “force-feed” him at 3am. Gill alleged that he was also “tied down and shaved” by 10 to 12 men.
During the hearing, Gill also said that he had not been given a fresh set of clothes during the past five days and had also not bathed during this period. He claimed that clothes had been sent from his home but they had been taken away.
Gill said he was ready to go with the police if he was not tortured. “I should be sent to jail. I am ready to cooperate in the investigation there,” he added.
The PTI leader said the judge could only fathom what the police had done with him, adding that the investigation had continued even during his hospital stay. “You will hand me over to them to die. I will not appear before you after that then. I am an asthmatic,” Gill told the court.
Gill not subjected to torture: Islamabad police
Meanwhile, the Islamabad police submitted a report in court today which stated that Gill was not subjected to any kind of torture starting from his arrest till the time he was sent to Adiala jail.
Last week, after it was alleged of torturing the PTI leader sexually, physically and mentally, Islamabad police had announced that it would conduct investigation into the matter.
“As per the statement of jail authorities and expert reports of the Pims Medical Board conducted on Aug 11, 17 and 18, no signs of torture were found on the body of the accused,” it said.
The report elaborated that the PTI leader had been examined by three medical boards and was also given the opportunity for medical examination twice by the Islamabad administration. “But Gill refused to this opportunity for unknown reasons.”
The Islamabad police also said that the allegations of physical, mental and sexual torture on the politician behind bars was not “corroborated by plausible evidence”.
Shahbaz Gill discharged from PIMS
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shahbaz Gill has been discharged from the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on Monday According to sources, the medical board has declared Shahbaz Gill ‘healthy and fit’ ahead of the hearing of a sedition case against him in a district and sessions court in Islamabad.
Sources said that the board has handed over the medical reports to the federal police, which will be present before the court. However, the sources added, the PTI leader was complaining of chest pain at the PIMS.