Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan granted bail after ‘invalid’ arrest

World
By William

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been released on bail by the Islamabad High Court after his arrest on corruption charges this week sparked deadly clashes before being declared illegal.

“The court granted Imran Khan a two-week provisional bail and ordered the authorities not to arrest him in jail [graft] case,” Khan’s lawyer Khawaja Harris told reporters on Friday.

The high court also ruled that Khan, who remained at the courthouse, could not be arrested until Monday in other cases filed against him, including charges related to the violent riots sparked by his detention this week, another said. from his lawyers. Tahir Malik.

Khan has been mired in a slew of legal accusations since he was removed from power by a no-confidence vote in parliament last April and then launched a defiant campaign against the military.

With a general election due in October, the former cricketer has accused the shaky incumbent coalition government of ousting him in cahoots with top generals.

The 70-year-old has also made explosive claims that they masterminded an assassination attempt in November in which he was shot in the leg while campaigning for quick polls.

The interior minister has promised to re-arrest Khan, who remains wildly popular, and police fired tear gas at protesters marching to the high court.

Khan was arrested by paramilitary forces at the Islamabad High Court on Tuesday, but the Supreme Court later declared the arrest illegal and demanded that the trial be “overturned”.

On Friday, Khan returned to the court in a convoy and entered the building, flanked by dozens of police and paramilitaries.

“Khan, your devotees are innumerable,” his party’s lawyers chanted in court as he raised a fist above his head.

Speaking to reporters in court after he was released on bail, Khan blamed the army commander, General Syed Asim Munir, for the situation in the country.

“It’s not the security setting; it’s just one man, the army chief,” Khan said. “There is no democracy in the military. The military is slandered by what is happening in the country right now.”

“That one man is afraid that if I come to power I will remove him from his positions, but I will not,” said the opposition leader.

Labyrinthine Lawsuits

Khan’s arrest on orders from Pakistan’s top anti-corruption agency earlier this week sparked two days of chaos, with several thousand of his supporters rampaging through cities across the country in protest, setting buildings on fire and blocking roads.

According to the police and hospitals, at least nine people have died in the unrest.

Authorities said hundreds of police officers were injured and more than 4,000 people were arrested, mainly in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.

The government argued that Khan’s release rewards and encourages mob violence.

Khan was arrested in what is known as the Al-Qadir Trust case. It concerns land that Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi bought from real estate magnate Malik Riaz for their Al-Qadir University Trust. The anti-corruption agency, the National Accountability Bureau, has alleged that Khan’s government struck a deal with Riaz in a quid pro quo agreement accusing it of helping Riaz launder more than $239 million while making a loss for the national treasury.

On Thursday, Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial said Khan’s arrest in the case was illegal because it took place on the grounds of the court where Khan had planned to apply for bail.

“Your arrest was invalid, so the whole process has to be reversed,” he told Khan.

Khan remained in court custody overnight under police protection for his own safety until he arrived at the Islamabad High Court, where hundreds of security forces were deployed and nearby roads were closed.

‘Country needs peace’

Islamabad police had issued an emergency order banning all gatherings in the capital after Khan’s Pakistani party Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) called on supporters to assemble.

Faisal Hussain Chaudhry, a lawyer for Khan, told reporters that more arrests of senior PTI leaders overnight brought the total number to 10.

“The country needs peace, but such steps by the government are of no help,” he said.

Despite ruling on the legality of Khan’s arrest, Home Secretary Rana Sanaullah refused to return on Thursday.

“If [Khan] gets bail from the high court tomorrow, we will wait for the bail cancellation and re-arrest him,” Sanaullah told Dunya TV.

Khan was arrested after the army reprimanded him for repeating allegations that it was involved in his assassination attempt.

Pakistani politicians have often been arrested and jailed since the country’s founding in 1947, but few have so directly challenged an army that has significant influence over domestic and foreign policy, staged at least three coups and more than three decades has reigned.

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