Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) President Parvez Elahi was released from Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat Jail on Tuesday after months of incarceration. This followed the Lahore High Court (LHC) granting him bail in the Punjab Assembly illegal recruitment case. Justice Sultan Tanvir of the LHC had announced the reserved verdict earlier in the day, leading to Elahi’s release and his subsequent return to his residence in Lahore.
Elahi was one of many PTI leaders arrested amid a crackdown on the opposition party following the violent protests of May 9, triggered by PTI founder Imran Khan’s arrest in a corruption case the previous year. The protests involved attacks on public and private properties, including military installations, which the army labeled as a “Black Chapter” in Pakistan’s history.
Elahi had initially been arrested on June 1, 2023, outside his residence in connection with a corruption case. Despite being granted bail multiple times, he was repeatedly re-arrested. Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court ordered the Interior Ministry to either hospitalize Elahi or designate his residence as a sub-jail within 15 days.
Upon his release, Elahi expressed gratitude to Allah and acknowledged the judges who supported his cause. He lamented the suffering of the people of Gujarat and claimed PTI’s mandate had been stolen in his home city. He vowed not to engage with the children of Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain until the mandate was restored. Elahi reaffirmed his loyalty to PTI’s founder, stating, “I was, am, and will stand with the founder of PTI.”
The illegal recruitment case involved allegations by Punjab’s Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) that Elahi had made 12 illegal grade 17 recruitments in the Punjab Assembly by altering records and using fake testing services. Following Elahi’s arrest, ACE had also arrested Secretary Rai Mumtaz Hussain, citing evidence of his involvement in the fraudulent recruitment process.
