Lahore: A Pakistani court has rejected the bail application of Malik Ishaq, chief of the banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi that has been blamed for a series of attacks on the Shia minority.
Ishaq, who is in house arrest in Bahawalpur district of Punjab province under the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, had applied for bail in the Lahore High Court in connection with two cases.
He was accused of delivering hate speeches against Shias during religious gatherings in Bhakkar district in August 2012 and February 2013.
A division bench yesterday rejected his bail petition and directed him to approach the trial court for relief. Ishaq's counsel argued that two cases registered by police in Bhakkar against his client amounted to “political victimisation”.
He claimed police registered the cases without any evidence and included provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act in the FIRs.
