The Peshawar High Court has ordered authorities to refrain from arresting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Deputy Speaker Suraya Bibi under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (3-MPO) and to unseal her residence.

The court also suspended the notification issued by the administration to seal her house and sought responses from the chief secretary, inspector general of police (IGP) and other respondents.

A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court, comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Muhammad Faheem Wali, heard a petition challenging the police raid on Suraya Bibi’s residence and the sealing of the property.

The petitioner’s counsel told the court that Suraya Bibi had been allotted an official residence in 2024. According to the counsel, governor’s rule and an emergency were imposed in the province on October 11, following which the petitioner’s residence was raided and sealed on October 14.

Also Read : Arafat Minhas joins Afridi and Razzaq in ODI record books

The counsel argued that the raid was illegal and that the Speaker’s House could not be sealed despite the imposition of governor’s rule or an emergency.

The petitioner’s counsel requested the court to restrain the relevant authorities from arresting Suraya Bibi and order the unsealing of her residence.

After hearing the petition, the court barred her arrest under 3-MPO and ordered that her residence be unsealed. It also suspended the notification regarding the sealing of the house and sought responses from the relevant authorities before the next hearing.

It is pertinent to mention that eight Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers, including members of the National and provincial assemblies, are reportedly missing.