LAHORE / ISLAMABAD: An Islamabad police team dispatched to Lahore to arrest former prime minister Imran Khan for skipping proceedings in the Toshakhana case returned empty-handed after the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader evaded arrest.
Shortly after the police returned, the PTI chief addressed his supporters at his Zaman Park residence where the contingent supported by the Lahore police had arrived to take him to the federal capital.
The Islamabad police announced on Twitter that their team had arrived in the provincial capital to arrest the former prime minister and that anyone who attempted to obstruct the arrest would be punished. Imran Khan would be transferred to Islamabad, as all citizens are equal before the law, according to the official police Twitter account. The police stated that the PTI chief was “avoiding” the arrest, adding that the officer leading the team had “gone into Imran’s room but he was not present there”.
PTI leader Shibli Faraz, who is also Mr. Khan’s chief of staff, informed the team that the PTI chairman was “not available,” so the team ultimately decided to call off the “operation.”
As he received the summons, the PTI leader said that the party chief would comply with legal processes.
Imran Khan’s residence was confirmed later in the day when he addressed supporters from the same location. In response, the Islamabad police said action would be taken against Senator Faraz for “misrepresenting facts” in the way of legal action.
It should be noted that, according to a video circulating on social media, the police also encountered resistance from supporters gathered outside the Lahore mansion of the PTI chairman, who refused to let them inside.
Meanwhile, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry told media persons that the PTI chief was already on protective bail from Islamabad High Court (IHC) until March 9 and added that “this venture holds no legal ground”. He claimed that the arrest of Imran Khan by the police would constitute contempt of court.
Decoding the “game plan” of the federal government, Mr Chaudhry explained to party workers that the government wanted to arrest Imran Khan to create unrest in the country. “Party workers must not take the law into their own hands in order to preserve peace,” he advised. He said the party’s leaders and workers were courting arrests and Imran Khan too was not afraid of jail but he was facing threats from those in corridors of power.
“Danger to life”
The leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) told party leaders and employees on the lawn of his residence that his attorneys would write a letter to the Chief Justice of Pakistan explaining that he was facing life threats.
“I am being summoned to appear before the courts in ‘farcical’ cases, such as a terrorism case involving a protest outside the office of the Election Commission of Pakistan while I was at home,” Mr. Khan said, adding that he had been booked in approximately 74 cases. “I appeared before the LHC and courts in Islamabad without any security,” he complained.
Referring to the Toshakhana case, the former premier said proceedings should be televised. “If proceedings of the Toshakhana case are aired on TV, people will know that Nawaz Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari are the real dacoits, and the only person who did not do anything against the law will turn out to be Imran Khan,” he claimed.
The PTI chief said he feared attempts on his life until PM Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and the spy agency officer dubbed as ‘Dirty Harry’ remained in power.
He even called ‘Dirty Harry’ a psychopath for his alleged torture of PTI leaders, including Senator Azam Swati and Shahbaz Gill. “Besides these three, there is one more person who is involved in attempts on my life,” he hinted, without naming anyone.
The PTI chairman said the PDM government was out to create fear in his party through arrests and torture but they defused all such tactics by courting arrests.
He claimed that he was about to give a call for the court arrest movement across the country but the Supreme Court ruling which paved the way for general elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa stopped him from doing so.
Mr. Khan stated that Shehbaz Sharif was about to be sentenced in a Rs16 billion FIA case and a Rs8 billion NAB case, but that he was “made the prime minister via a regime change plot.”
He asserted that Maryam Nawaz was also caught holding expensive properties in London’s Mayfair neighbourhood and was unable to provide a source of income for these properties. “Now, the Punjab police are providing protocol for Maryam Nawaz’s political campaign using taxpayer funds,” he lamented.
‘Govt not interested in Imran’s arrest’
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan told media persons that the government was not interested in arresting the former prime minister as the police team reached Zaman Park in compliance with court orders.
“Had we been interested in arresting him [Imran], we would have taken him into custody on February 28 when he came to Islamabad to obtain bail. If we so choose, we can even arrest him in Lahore,” the minister boasted. The minister said that the police were following the directions of the court and they will inform it that Mr Khan did not cooperate with the team.
