Imran Khan, Pakistanโs most famous Khan, does a disappearing act as Pakistan police reach his residence to arrest him in the Toshakhana case.
Islamabad Police, along with their counterparts from Punjab Police, reached Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khanโs Zaman Park residence in Lahore on Sunday, March 5, to take him into custody for his persistent absences from Toshakhana court hearings.
Last week, a district and sessions court in Islamabad issued non-bailable arrest warrants for the ousted prime minister over his continuous absence before the judge in the Toshakhana case.
The police team led by a Superintendent of Police (SP) went to the room in Khanโs Zaman Park residence where Khan was expected to be, but he was not there.
Meanwhile, senior PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry has urged all PTI supporters to converge outside Imranโs Lahore residence. While addressing the media outside Zaman Park, Chaudhry stated that the purpose of calling Imran to these courts was to โattempt yet another attack on himโ.
โThey want that he (Imran) comes to court and the terrorists get a chance to take Imran Khanโs life,โ Chaudhry said, alleging that the government was behind the assassination plot.
He also said that both the federal and the caretaker Punjab governments wanted โto cause anarchy so that polls can be avoidedโ and โwe are dealing with the legal matters as per law in the courtsโ.
Chaudhry also stated that if the PTI chief is arrested, nationwide peaceful protests would be called โthe likes of which nobody has ever seen beforeโ.
Earlier, Chaudhry warned that โany attempt to arrest Imran Khan will seriously worsen the situationโ. He also urged the government to โact sensiblyโ and โnot push Pakistan into further crisisโ, he stressed, stating that the arrest would be โillegalโ.
The court warrant is only for attendance,โ he said, โIslamabad policeโs insistence on arrest is illegal.โ
PTI vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi has also told reporters outside Imranโs Lahore residence that while Islamabad policeโs notice has been received, โthere are no orders for arrest in itโ.
On the other hand, the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) police have issued a statement on Twitter stating that they are acting as per court orders and โall operations are being completed with the cooperation of Lahore Policeโ.
โLegal action will be taken against those obstructing the execution of court orders,โ the police said. โPolice will transfer Imran Khan to Islamabad under their protection. Law is equal for all,โ the statement added.
Scores of PTI supporters have gathered outside Khanโs Zaman Park residence with the intent to disrupt the arrest procedure. At the time of the filing of this story, the police were still present outside Khanโs residence, surrounded by scores of PTI workers.
