LHC declares Haleem Adil Sheikh’s arrest illegal, orders release

The Lahore High Court Wednesday declared the arrest of PTI Opposition Leader in Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh as illegal and ordered his release, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

The court also granted protective bail to the PTI leader till April 16.

A petition seeking recovery of PTI Opposition Leader in Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh had been filed in the Lahore High Court.

The petition was filed by Mr Adil’s personal secretary Muhammad Farhan on Wednesday. The PTI leader was whisked away early this morning by men in plain clothes from a hotel in Lahore where he came to stay yesterday.

The Punjab IG police and others were made respondents in the petition.

The plea stated that some men wearing plain clothes took away Haleem Adil. Police were contacted in this regard, but still the whereabouts of the SA opposition leader have not been disclosed, the petition added. 

The petition further stated that despite a lapse of several hours, Mr Adil had not been produced yet before any court. The Lahore High Court is requested to pass an order for the appearance of the PTI leader before a court, the plea added. 

Earlier, the police arrested PTI Opposition Leader in Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh from Lahore in the wee hours of Wednesday. Haleem Adil came to Lahore yesterday and was staying in a hotel. Some officials in plain clothes entered the hotel and took him away with them. He has been shifted to some unknown place.

The CCTV footage of PTI leader Mr Adil being arrested by plain-clothed officials also surfaced. It could be seen in the footage that the MPA did not put up any resistance and went with the men.

His wife Dua Bhutto and daughter Ayesha Haleem confirmed his arrest through their tweets. 

Daughter Ayesha wrote in her tweet that her father was a member of Sindh Assembly and he could not be detained without the permission of the SA speaker. 

I want to ask if there is any institution in this country that can tell me where my father is or who has taken him? He was picked up from his hotel in Lahore at 3:30 am by men in civilian clothing, we have no idea where he is right now or if he is safe! #WhereIsHaleemAdil pic.twitter.com/oFim9Z7K2f

— Ayesha Haleem Adil Sheikh (@ayesha_haleem) July 6, 2022

I don’t know who is behind my father’s dissapearance but I swear I will not rest until I exoose every inch of this operation!! Bring my father back or I will raise hell #WhereIsHaleeemAdil

— Ayesha Haleem Adil Sheikh (@ayesha_haleem) July 6, 2022

میرے شوہر حلیم عادل شیخ کو سول ڈریس میں ملوث افراد نے لاہور سے گرفتار کرلیا

— DuaBhuttoPTI (@Dua_KamilBhutto) July 5, 2022

According to sources, several cases have been registered in different Sindh police stations against Mr Adil and to evade his arrest in Sindh, he came to Lahore.

Yesterday, PTI Chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan decried the harassment of the party supporters wondering why the judiciary was silent over the matter, adding that whether fundamental rights, granted by the Constitution to the citizens of Pakistan, had been “suspended” under what he called a “fascist regime”.

Police seek PTI leader’s transit remand

Meanwhile, according to 24News TV, the police presented Mr Adil before the Model Town court seeking his transit remand.

The handcuffed Adil raised slogans after arriving at the court.

After getting his remand, the police would shift him to Sindh province as the Sindh anti-corruption department has registered a case against the PTI leader.

Reporters Malik Ashraf and Jamaluddin Jamali