IHC grants protective bail to TikToker booked following stampede at wedding event

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday granted protective bail to TikToker Muhammad Ansar Jatt, alias “Mr Pattlo”, after a stampede at his mehndi (henna) event in Sialkot claimed two lives. Jatt had announced holding a mehndi event and prize-distribution ceremony at Faraz Cricket Ground on Daska Road on Friday night; however, with hundreds gathered at the site, a stampede occurred when the stadium gates opened, killing two and injuring 18 people. Subsequently, a first information report (FIR) was registered on October 31 at the Motra Police Station, naming Jatt, his brother, the owner of Faraz Cricket Ground, six others, and 40-45 unidentified security guards.

On Tuesday, IHC Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar approved the protective — also known as transitory — bail for the TikToker until Nov 10, allowing him to avoid arrest while he approaches the relevant court to seek legal remedy. He surrendered before the court in a wheelchair. Jatt had filed a petition, seeking the court’s intervention to prevent his arrest before he could reach the court of competent jurisdiction. Advocates Barrister Qasim Nawaz Abbasi and Barrister Raja Ali Abbas Jalap filed the petition on his behalf. According to the legal document, Jatt was named in the FIR, which was registered under Sections 322 (punishment for qatl-i-khata ), 440 (mischief committed after preparation made for causing death or hurt), 431 (mischief by injury to public road, bridge, river or channel), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 109 (punishment of abetment) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), read with Section 16 of the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960. During the proceedings, the…