AJK protest case: Mushtaq Ahmed, 95 others granted bail by ATC

ISLAMABAD: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Monday approved post-arrest bail pleas of former senator Mushtaq Ahmad and 95 other accused in a case registered against them in connection with a protest related to the situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJ&K).

ATC judge Abul Hasanat Mohammad Zulqarnain, while hearing the case, approved post-arrest bail applications of Mushtaq Ahmad, Razi Tahir and 94 other accused against a surety bond of Rs 5,000 each.

Defence counsels Sardar Masroof, Zahid Bashir Dar and Amina Ali and prosecutor Raja Naveed Hussain appeared before the court.

On July 31, the Shalimar Police Station registered a first information report (FIR) against the accused on the complaint of Sub-Inspector (SI) Ghulam Murtaza. The FIR says the former senator and dozens of others had led around 400-500 people and gathered in Sector F-10 Markaz.

The former senator allegedly made a provocative speech on loudspeakers, forcing shops to shutdown, and also chanted slogans against the present government. It says that later Mushtaq led the protesters to Sambal Road with the intention of marching to the Main Jinnah Avenue Road and blocking roads.

An official of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration has told the accused to end the protest as it was organized without obtaining a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the administration.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026