ISLAMABAD
\nA district and sessions court on Friday sent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudry to Adiala Jail on a 14-day judicial remand in a case over \u201cinciting violence against a constitutional institution\u201d.
\nThe PTI leader was arrested from Lahore on Wednesday on charges of sedition for \u201cthreatening\u201d the chief election commissioner (CEC) and members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
\nFollowing this, an Islamabad court had handed Fawad over to the police in a two-day physical remand.
\nAs the remand ended today, he was produced before the court of Judicial Magistrate Waqas Ahmed Raja amid tight security.
\nAt the outset of the hearing, the police requested the court for a further seven-day physical remand of the ex-minister.
\nThe prosecutor, who is also the commission\u2019s lawyer in the case, reading the text of the first information report (FIR) registered against the PTI leader, noted the language used against the CEC and caretaker Punjab chief minister.
\nHe said that they have matched the voice of the suspect with Fawad Chaudhry\u2019s and a photogrammetry test is to be conducted.
\n\u201cMore recoveries are still to be made,\u201d he said, seeking further physical remand of the PTI leader.
\n\u201cThe accused has also admitted to the speech before the court on the previous hearing,\u201d the ECP\u2019s lawyer added.
\nThe prosecution remarked that Fawad may be a senior politician but \u201cno one is above the law\u201d, adding that it is necessary to search his house and recover his laptop and mobile.
\nThe PTI leader\u2019s counsel Advocate Babar Awan responded that \u201cFawad Chaudhary is not a terrorist\u201d.
\n\u201cThe Election Commission has made itself a government,\u201d remarked the lawyer, saying that the ECP\u2019s job is to conduct elections.
\nHe questioned, \u201cif the Election Commission is the plaintiff in a case against me, how can I ask them for justice in the elections?\u201d
\nSpeaking in front of the court, Fawad said that his words \u201care not just his own but they are the party\u2019s words and communicates the PTI\u2019s stance\u201d.
\nHe also produced the CCTV footage before the court, saying that his arrest is \u201cillegal\u201d.
\n\u201cI was neither arrested by the Lahore police nor the Islamabad police,\u201d he claimed, alluding that the ruling coalition and the establishment were behind his arrest. His lawyer added that Fawad Chaudhary had been \u201ckidnapped\u201d.
\nThe PTI leader maintained that he has filed for Rs500 million in damages against the ECP and filed a request for the return of his mobile phone from the police.
\nSubsequently, the court approved Fawad\u2019s request to stop the police from handcuffing him in the courtroom.
\nThe court also rejected the plea for an extension in his physical remand and sent Fawad for a 14-day judicial remand to Adiala Jail.
\nMeanwhile, a bail application was filed by Fawad, saying that the case against him was on \u201culterior motives\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD A district and sessions court on Friday sent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudry to Adiala Jail on a 14-day judicial remand in a case over \u201cinciting violence against a constitutional institution\u201d. The PTI leader was arrested from Lahore on Wednesday on charges of sedition for \u201cthreatening\u201d the chief election commissioner (CEC) and members […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-310130","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n