Rawalpindi, Jan 16 (PTI) Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid has been arrested from outside a courtroom after his bail was rejected by an anti-terrorism court in a case related to the May 9 riots, a media report said on Tuesday.

A close ally of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party founder Imran Khan, Rashid, who was the interior minister in his government, has denied all allegations.

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An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC), which rejected his bail, later adjourned the hearing of the riots-related cases till January 25, Geo News reported.

Rashid was facing a case in connection with vandalism at the Metro bus station situated at Sixth Road here.

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“With God as my witness, I was not present at the spots (where the attacks) took place,” Rashid told reporters after his arrest.

Khan's party workers vandalised a dozen military installations, including the Jinnah House (Lahore Corps Commander House), Mianwali Airbase and the ISI building in Faisalabad. The Army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi was also attacked by the mob for the first time.

Rashid's lawyer Abdul Razzaq Khan told reporters that the senior politico's nephew, Rashid Shafique, was granted bail in all 13 cases related to the May 9 riots.

The AML chief was being shifted to the New Town Police Station. “He will be produced before the ATC tomorrow to decide on his judicial or physical remand,” Khan said.

He categorically rejected allegations that Rashid incited people to attack military installations or Lal Haveli was the centre of all conspiracies, Geo News said.

To a question, Khan replied that it would be impossible to organise Rashid's meeting with Imran Khan or PTI president Chaudhry Parvez Elahi in jail.

Citing his cases ahead of the February 8 general elections, Rashid told journalists that he would contest polls “from the prison” even if he was arrested by police.

Elaborating on his plans, he said that he and his nephew Shafique would participate in forthcoming nationwide polls from jail on the symbol of “inkpot” and “pen.”

Prior to this development, the senior politician and other accused had secured interim bails in 9 out of 13 cases from the ATC in Rawalpindi.

The establishment had arrested thousands of PTI workers and supporters.

Earlier on Tuesday, a local media report said that the military trials of most of the 103 civilians, allegedly involved in the May 9 attacks, have almost been completed. In around 90 per cent of such cases, the suspects have been found involved in the May 9 attacks on military installations.

However, the verdicts in these cases are not being announced because of the Supreme Court's order, it said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)