After being released on bail, former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan returned home to Lahore. Khan and his legal team spent hours in the Islamabad courts after the judge granted him bail, negotiating his release. Khan released a video from his vehicle as he drove to Lahore, saying the Islamabad police tried to keep him in the court and only let him go when he threatened to tell the public he was being held against his will. During a Tuesday court hearing, scores of paramilitary forces detained Khan. Khan was ordered to appear in court on Friday after the Supreme Court ruled his detention “unlawful” on Thursday.
Khan’s supporters rioted for days after the judgment, threatening nationwide instability. He was arrested hours after the strong military scolded him for accusing them of an assassination attempt last year. The Al-Qadir Trust case detained the 70-year-old former cricketer. Khan and Bushra Bibi obtained land from Malik Riaz for their Al-Qadir University Trust. Pakistan’s anti-corruption body, the National Accountability Bureau, claimed Khan’s government made a quid pro quo pact with Riaz. His cabinet is accused of helping Riaz launder almost $239m and costing the government. Since his April 2018 removal, Khan has faced hundreds of corruption, terrorist, sedition, and blasphemy charges. He calls all charges political.
Arrests of thousands
Since Tuesday, thousands of Khan followers have burned houses, blocked highways, and clashed with police outside military sites in protest of his incarceration. Police and hospitals reported nine unrest deaths. Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces saw hundreds of police personnel hurt and over 4,000 people jailed. Khan’s lawyer, Faisal Hussain Chaudhry, stated Friday that 10 PTI officials had been detained. ‘No army democracy’ Khan, who is popular ahead of October elections, will be arrested by the interior minister.
No court order should be violated. But if there’s a method to arrest Imran Khan, we’ll do it,” Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah toldreporters. After Khan’s arrest on Tuesday, mobile data and social media sites like Facebook and YouTube were progressively restored nationwide. Khan’s military disobedience is unique. Khan accused General Syed Asim Munir, the army’s leader, for the country’s plight on Friday. Khan stated the army commander is the security institution. The army is undemocratic. Three coups have made Pakistan’s army its most powerful institution. Economic or political instability has prompted military intervention. Despite worries of another intervention amid months of unrest, the military supported democracy. The chief of army staff trusts democracy completely. Major-General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, top military spokesperson, told Geo there is no martial law.
