PTI leader Hassaan Khan Niazi is reported to have been handed over to the military for trial, it emerges on Friday.

A police report submitted to the Lahore High Court (LHC) Friday stated that Hassaan Niazi, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s nephew and his focal person on legal affairs, has been handed over to a military court for trial.

LHC heard Hassaan Niazi’s father’s plea today, presided by Justice Sultan Tanveer.

The police submitted a report in the court, detailing the offences in which Niazi was found to be allegedly involved.

The report was submitted by Punjab Additional Advocate General (AAG) Ghulam Sarwar.

As per the report, Hassaan Khan Niazi will be investigated and tried by the military following his nomination as the prime suspect in the case pertaining to the Jinnah House attack in Lahore, which was triggered after the PTI chief’s arrest in Islamabad on May 9.

PTI leader, who had been in hiding since the protests of May 9 and 10, was arrested late Sunday night from Abbottabad.

Following his arrest, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) sought details from the federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments about his arrest, fixing August 18 (today) as the day for the hearing.

On August 15, Hassan Niazi’s father, Hafeezullah Khan Niazi, filed a petition in the LHC seeking recovery of his son, which was heard today.

PTI leader Hassaan Khan Niazi is to be tried by the military

Details have emerged that a military official in a letter to police dated Aug 17, requested to hand over Niazi’s custody to the military for “trial by the court martial”.

The said letter is reported to have been written by a battalion’s commanding officer to Sarwar Road In-charge Investigation Muhammad Sarwar.

The letter stated that Hassaan Khan Niazi, who “was involved in the commission of offences in the incident of May 9, 2023, at Jinnah House, Lahore Cantonment, is in police custody”.

“It had been revealed to military authorities through initial investigation that Niazi had been found involved in the commission of offences attracting the provisions of Official Secrets Act 1923 read with section 2(1)(d) (persons subject to the Act) and 59(4) (civil offences) of the Pakistan Army Act 1952, which are offences/charges triable in the domain of ‘court martial’ under the Pakistan Army Act 1952”, the letter stated.

Therefore, the “suspect […] is liable to be inquired, investigated and tried by military authorities by court-martial,” it added.

In the letter, military official proceeded to request the Sarwar Road police that the “custody of the accused be delivered to military authorities in accordance with Section 549(3) (delivery to military authorities of persons liable to be tried by court-martial) of the [Code of Criminal Procedure] for inquiry, investigation to the extent of charges under the provisions of Official Secrets Act 1923, and subsequent trial by the court martial under the Pakistan Army Act 1952”.