The Peshawar High Court on Monday restrained the police from arresting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur in the liquor recovery case and directed him to appear before the relevant court.

A two-member PHC bench comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Dr Khurshid Iqbal heard the petition filed by Ali Amin Gandapur seeking suspension of his arrest warrant issued by the Islamabad civil court.

Gandapur’s lawyer, Bashir Khan Wazir, told the bench that the chief minister has obtained protective bail from the Peshawar High Court in several cases.

However, in one case, the senior civil judge of Islamabad issued an arrest warrant and directed the police to arrest and produce the petitioner by July 21.

The lawyer stated that the chief minister had not received any order in this regard. The Peshawar High Court had granted him protective bail in various cases, and he had been appearing in these cases, the lawyer added.

The chief minister was unaware of the arrest warrant issued by the senior civil judge of Islamabad and was also not aware of the date for his appearance in court, the lawyer said, adding that now, the chief minister wished to appear before the relevant court.

Bashir Wazir advocate further told the court that the date mentioned in the court order had already passed by the time it was delivered, which is why the chief minister could not appear.

He explained that Ali Amin Gandapur is the chief executive of the province, and due to the prevailing situation, it was not possible for him to appear at that time. However, he now wished to attend the court hearing.

The lawyer requested the court to suspend the arrest warrants issued by the senior civil judge, Islamabad, for Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.

Later, the Peshawar High Court restrained the police from arresting Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and instructed Gandapur to appear before the relevant court on the scheduled date.