2023-05-13 12:41:42
Imran Khan, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, has been released on bail and returned safely to his residence in Lahore following days of protests across Pakistan following his arrest on corruption charges.
Imran Khan spent several hours inside a courthouse in the country’s capital, Islamabad, apparently negotiating with his legal team over his bail following the court granted him bail.
Imran Khan issued a video statement from the car he was traveling in on his way to his residence in the eastern city of Lahore, claiming that Islamabad police tried various tactics to hold him until he threatened to tell Public Authorities only allowed him to travel while he was being held there once morest his will.
Imran Khan was arrested and taken away by dozens of members of the paramilitary forces during a routine court appearance on Tuesday.
Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Tuesday declared Khan’s arrest “illegal” and directed authorities to make him appear in court the next day.
The ruling is a blow to the government amid the current standoff that has sparked days of unrest among followers of Imran Khan and sparked fears of widespread unrest in the country.
Imran Khan was detained hours following being reprimanded by the powerful military. He once more accused the military of involvement in last year’s assassination attempt once morest him.
The 70-year-old former cricket star was arrested in the so-called Kadir trust case. The case involved Imran Khan and his wife buying land from real estate tycoon Malik Riaz for their Qadir University trust fund.
The National Accountability Bureau, Pakistan’s anti-corruption agency, said Imran Khan’s government had struck a deal with Riaz in a quid pro quo. Imran Khan’s cabinet is accused of helping Riaz launder more than $239 million, while also causing damage to the state coffers.
Imran Khan has been charged in dozens of cases – including corruption, terrorism, sedition and blasphemy – in the past year since he was removed from office last April. He denies all allegations, which he says are politically motivated.
thousands arrested
Thousands of Imran Khan supporters have rampaged through the city since Tuesday to protest his arrest, setting fire to buildings, blocking roads and clashing with police outside military facilities.
At least nine people were killed in the unrest, police and hospitals said. Hundreds of police officers were injured and more than 4,000 people were detained, mostly in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
Imran Khan’s lawyer, Faisal Hussain Chaudhry, said on the 12th that 10 senior leaders of Pakistan’s PTI party had been arrested.
“Army without democracy”
The country’s home minister has pledged to recapture Imran Khan, who remains popular ahead of elections this October.
Pakistani Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan told private television channel Geo News that “there must be no violation of the court order. But if there is a way to arrest Imran Khan … then there will certainly be one.” “
Mobile data services and access to social media platforms are also gradually being restored across the country — including Facebook and YouTube, which were cut off shortly following Imran Khan’s arrest.
Imran Khan has launched an unprecedented campaign once morest the military. Imran Khan told reporters in court on Tuesday that Army Chief of Staff Syed Asim Munir was to blame for the situation in the country.
Imran Khan said that “the security agencies should not be blamed, but one person, the army chief of staff”, and “there is no democracy in the army.”
The army remains Pakistan’s most powerful institution, having ruled nearly half of Pakistan’s 75-year history through three coups.
The military has historically intervened on the grounds of economic or political instability in the country. However, the military has said it will support the democratic process despite widespread fears of renewed military intervention during the months of unrest.
Ahmed Sharif Chowdhury, the army’s chief spokesman, told Geo News, “The senior leadership of the army, the army chief, fully believes in democracy. There is no question of martial law now.”
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