ISLAMABAD: The embattled Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday strongly condemned the verdict delivered by the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Rawalpindi in the General Headquarters (GHQ) attack case, terming it unjust and politically motivated.
In a statement, the PTI said the decision violated fundamental principles of justice and represented another instance of political retribution in the country’s history.
The party described the ruling as unjust, biased and driven by political considerations, alleging that the events of May 9 had been used under a coordinated narrative to target PTI and its leadership.
According to the party, the incidents were being used as a pretext to suppress an entire political party, imprison its leadership and intimidate its workers.
PTI maintained that its political struggle has always remained within the framework of the constitution and the law, and has consistently been peaceful.
However, the party said the latest verdict further strengthened the perception that the judicial system was being used for political purposes.
The statement added that PTI founding chairman Imran Khan remained in prolonged detention, while several party leaders and workers were facing multiple legal cases that had effectively restricted their political activity.
The sentences handed down in the GHQ case, it said, formed another link in what the party described as a continuing pattern of political targeting.
According to the PTI, a total of 47 leaders and workers were sentenced in the case, including Omar Ayub, Zartaj Gul, Murad Saeed, Shibli Faraz, Hammad Azhar, Kanwal Shauzab, Sheikh Rashid Shafique, Shahbaz Gill, Zulfi Bukhari, Muhammad Ahmed Chattha, Rai Hassan Nawaz and Rai Muhammad Murtaza, among others.
The party noted that several of the leaders were sentenced in absentia. PTI also expressed astonishment that proclaimed offenders had been sentenced while the trial was still ongoing, calling it an unprecedented step that, it said, risked undermining the credibility of the judicial process.
Despite the verdict, the party vowed to continue its democratic struggle and said such decisions would neither silence the masses voice nor halt its political movement.
“We will pursue all constitutional and legal avenues and raise our voice for justice at every forum,” the statement said. The PTI demanded an immediate end to what it termed a cycle of political revenge, calling for the supremacy of the constitution and the rule of law to be upheld and for the release of all political prisoners without delay.
“The people of Pakistan are fully aware that these actions constitute a continuation of political engineering,” the statement added, stating that PTI, along with its workers and supporters, would continue to struggle for democracy, judicial independence, freedom of expression, and the people’s right to choose their representatives.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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