IRIA News

Pakistan’s former prime minister, Imran Khan, was arrested on May 9, escalating the political crisis in the country and leading to clashes between his supporters and police. Thousands of Khan’s supporters took to the streets in different cities to protest against his arrest.

Imran Khan had traveled to Islamabad from Lahore to seek bail in different cases and was submitting his biometric data for a court appearance in Islamabad when paramilitary forces broke down a window to apprehend him, according to videos shared on mainstream media. Raja Mateen, a member of Khan’s legal team, said that used undue force had been used against him, and “they dragged Khan from there”.

The 70-year-old politician was arrested from the Islamabad court premises by a contingent of paramilitary troops, who the Islamabad police chief later said were operating on an arrest warrant by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the country’s anti-corruption agency. Khan was whisked away in a vehicle with tinted windows under heavy security.

Rangers abducted PTI Chairman Imran Khan, these are the visuals. Pakistan’s brave people must come out and defend their country. pic.twitter.com/hJwG42hsE4

— PTI (@PTIofficial) May 9, 2023

PTI spokesperson Fawad Chaudhry said Khan had been “whisked away by unknown people to an unknown location.” It was not immediately clear where he was taken but some media reports suggested he was taken to the NAB office in Rawalpindi city and is expected to be brought before a court on May 10.

Court cases and worsening political crisis

According to a statement by Islamabad police, his detention was connected to a case known as the Al-Qadir Trust case, which involves allegations Khan earned billions of rupees through illegal land transactions. Interior minister Rana Sanaullah said Khan had been arrested over corruption, alleging he cost the country’s treasury millions of dollars by illegally purchasing land from a business tycoon while in office. Khan has rejected the cases against him as “biased” and politically motivated.

The graft case is one of more than a hundred registered against Imran Khan since his ouster in April 2022 in a no-confidence vote after nearly four years in power. Since then, Khan has held countrywide protests calling for snap general elections.

The political crisis in Pakistan that has been building for months was exacerbated with the arrest of Khan, Pakistan’s most popular leader according to opinion polls. It comes a day after the military criticized him for repeatedly accusing a senior military officer of involvement in the assassination attempt against him, which he narrowly survived.

For months, Khan has been openly challenging the Pakistani military and government, accusing them of conspiring against him. The cricket legend-turned-politician has accused the Sharif government of attempting to arrest and remove him from the playing field ahead of a general election scheduled for October 2023.

After his arrest, his party released a video of Imran Khan addressing the nation, recorded before his court appearance on May 9. “Pakistan’s public has known me for 50 years. I have never gone against Pakistan’s constitution and I’ve never broken the law. Since I’ve been in politics, I have always tried that [all] my struggle would be peaceful and within the ambits of the constitution.” He alleged that his arrest was not because he had broken any laws but rather an attempt to force him to accept the current government.

Protests across the country

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI) called his arrest a “black day for our democracy and country”. The party leadership called on supporters to take to the streets, writing on Twitter: “It’s your time, people of Pakistan. Khan has always stood for you, now it’s your time to stand for him.” However, the party leaders urged protesters to remain peaceful.

The arrest of Khan prompted protests in Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, and other cities. In Islamabad, his supporters tried to block a major highway, while in Lahore, they were reportedly gathering for a demonstration near the residences of military officers. The protesters also gathered outside the former prime minister’s Zaman Park residence in Lahore and blocked the adjacent roads by burning tires. Police used water cannons to disperse the protesters.

In Karachi city, PTI supporters gathered outside the local party office on Shahrah-e-Faisal Road, causing the police to deploy tear gas canisters to disperse them when they tried to block the road. In Quetta, clashes between protesters and the military led to one death and five injuries. Meanwhile, in Islamabad, 43 protesters were arrested and five police officers were injured, police said.

Social media blocked, Internet restricted

Following violent protests in some cities, internet services have been partially suspended across Pakistan. Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms have been restricted by Pakistani authorities as Khan’s arrest sparked violent demonstrations by his angry supporters.

“Additionally, total internet shutdowns have been observed in some regions,” according to NetBlocks, the global internet monitor, said. Amnesty International has called on the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to restore mobile internet services and social media platform access.

Khan is not the first former prime minister to be detained in Pakistan. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was arrested and hanged in 1979. The current prime minister’s brother, Nawaz Sharif, who also served as prime minister three times and currently lives in the UK, was also arrested on corruption allegations.