SARGODHA: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Sargodha has sentenced 70 individuals, including prominent political figures of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, to 10 years in prison in connection with the May 9, 2023 violence cases.
Among those convicted are Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar, MNA Rana Bilal, and MNA Ahmed Chattha. The verdict was issued after the court heard nine separate cases related to the incident.
The case was filed in Mianwali in connection with acts of vandalism and rioting during the May 9, 2023 protests, which erupted following the arrest of PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan in a corruption case.
The court granted exemption from personal appearance to all 32 accused, including Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar.
May 9 violence
Violent clashes were broken out across Pakistan after former prime minister Imran Khan was arrested on May 9, 2023.
The protests were held in remote and major cities as the party workers were agitated due to their chairman’s arrest, with Balochistan, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad summoning the armed forces to ensure law and order.
Army installations, including Corps Commander’s house in Lahore, had come under attack during the protests by PTI workers.
It is pertinent to mention that the PTI founder is named as main accused in all the May 9 riots cases.
The verdict came at the time when the opposition MPAs allegedly caused disruption and damaged property during a Punjab Assembly session on June 27, 2025. In response, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan suspended the membership of these 26 SIC lawmakers.
Later on June 28, the speaker announced his decision to refer the matter to the ECP for the disqualification of the suspended members.
The members suspended by the speaker included Malik Fahad Masood, Muhammad Tanvir Aslam, Syed Riffat Mehmood, Yasir Mehmood Qureshi, Kalimullah Khan, Muhammad Ansar Iqbal, Ali Asif, Zulfiqar Ali, Ahmed Mujtaba Chaudhry, Shahid Javed, Muhammad Ismail, Khayal Ahmed, Shehbaz Ahmed, Tayyab Rashid, Imtiaz Mehmood, Ali Imtiaz, Rashid Tufail, Murtaza Iqbal, Khalid Zubair, Ijaz Shafi, Saima Kanwal, Muhammad Naeem, Sajjad Ahmed, Rana Aurangzeb, Shoaib Mir and Usama Asghar Ali Gujjar.
