Two days after his incarceration provoked widespread protests and fatal violence, Pakistan’s Supreme Court declared on Thursday that the former prime minister Imran Khan’s arrest was illegal.
Khan is still in the Supreme Court’s custody for his own protection, according to one of his aides, and will appear again on Friday.
Khan was taken into custody on Tuesday for alleged corruption in a swift operation that saw cops force their way into a courthouse in the nation’s capital, Islamabad.
He was subsequently detained in a guesthouse inside the police headquarters, where he appeared on Wednesday for a special hearing before a court behind closed doors before being ordered to remain in jail for eight days on a charge made by Pakistan’s anti-corruption agency.
Khan’s attorneys had filed a petition to have the court hearings against their client held at the police department’s main building rather than a courtroom.
On May 10, 2023, in Lahore, following protests by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party members and backers of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, motorists pass burned-out vehicles in front of Zaman Park.
In response to Imran Khan’s detention, protesters are now targeting Pakistan’s military. Here are the essential details.
In order to ensure law and order, police claimed that keeping Khan away from the public was the best course of action.
Following his detention, protests pitting his followers against army supporters descended into violence, resulting in eight fatalities and hundreds of arrests.
The former prime minister is charged in a separate case with selling gifts given to him by foreign leaders while in government as well as with illegally purchasing property to build a university.
The former prime minister said in a pre-recorded video posted on YouTube by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) political party that he had been “detained on incorrect charges” and urged his supporters to “come and struggle for your rights.”
Nervous showdown
The arrest of the former cricketer-turned-politician, Khan, 70, heightened an already tense standoff between Khan’s supporters and the military that had been festering for months.
Crowds and security personnel clashed during the greatest demonstrations, which took place in Khan’s political strongholds of Lahore and Peshawar.
In Peshawar, hundreds of demonstrators surrounded the Radio Pakistan offices and set the building on fire.
According to authorities, there have been more than 300 injuries. According to a government official who asked to remain anonymous and spoke to CNN on Thursday, at least 650 individuals were also held in the province of Khyber Pakhunkhwa.
According to Reuters, police stated that about 1,000 Khan supporters had been detained in Punjab, the region with the greatest population.
