A Lahore anti-terrorism court on Tuesday issued non-bailable arrest warrants for PTI chief Imran Khan and several other former and current party leaders in cases pertaining to vandalism during the May 9 riots.

The first information reports (FIRs) pertain to cases of torching a container at Kalma Chowk during the May 9 riots and setting fire to a PML-N office in Model Town.

The court order, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, said investigating officer Inspector Muhammad Saleem requested the issuance of the non-bailable arrest warrants since PTI leaders Hammad Azhar and Mian Aslam were named in the FIRs while Imran, Jamshed Iqbal, Musarrat Jamshed, Murad Saeed and Hassan Khan Niazi were involved in the case through the supplementary statements.

The officer said the named individuals had “intentionally concealed themselves for the fear of their arrest”.

Later, Naeem Haider Panjutha, the PTI chief’s lawyer, said just nine FIRs were registered against the former premier and he had secured bail in all of them. His arrest warrants today were issued in an “unknown FIR”, he added.

At least eight people were killed and 290 injured on May 9 after the PTI chief was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau in the Al-Qadir Trust case. The protesters had also stormed the residence of the corps commander in Lahore — also called Jinnah House — and tore down a gate of General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.

Subsequently, over 1,900 enraged protesters were rounded up in running battles with law enforcers across the country while cases were also registered against Imran and his party workers.