Lahore: The stalemate between law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and the workers of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) continues over the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
According to reports, the police and security personnel made a fresh attempt to arrest the PTI chief in connection with the Toshkhana case early morning today.
For more than 15 hours, PTI workers engaged the Islamabad police — aided by their Punjab counterparts and later Rangers personnel — in pitched battles that continued late into the night with no signs of relenting. So far, the police have suffered around 30 injuries during the clash, while at least 15 PTI men have been detained.
In his latest tweet, Imran Khan has termed the arrest claim a drama, adding that the “real intent is to abduct and assassinate”.
“I signed a surety bond last evening, but the DIG refused to even entertain it. There is no doubt of their mala fide intent,” Imran Khan wrote on Twitter.
Clearly "arrest" claim was mere drama because real intent is to abduct & assassinate. From tear gas & water cannons, they have now resorted to live firing. I signed a surety bond last evening, but the DIG refused to even entertain it. There is no doubt of their mala fide intent. pic.twitter.com/5LZtZE8Ies
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) March 15, 2023
In another series of tweets, Imran Khan wrote: “My question to the establishment, to those who claim they are “neutral”: Is this your idea of neutrality, Rangers directly confronting unarmed protestors and [leadership] of largest pol party when their [leader] is facing an illegal warrant & case already in court & when govt of crooks trying to abduct & possibly murder him?”
to those who claim they are "neutral": Is this your idea of neutrality, Rangers directly confronting unarmed protestors & ldrship of largest pol party when their ldr is facing an illegal warrant & case already in court & when govt of crooks trying to abduct & possibly murder him?
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) March 15, 2023
Early in the morning, the PTI posted a video on its official Twitter handle in which it claimed that the police had started tear gas shelling at Imran’s residence once again.
چئیرمین عمران خان کی رہائش گاہ پر شیلنگ کا سلسلہ دوبارہ شروع #زمان_پارک_پُہنچو pic.twitter.com/stskK49va2
— PTI (@PTIofficial) March 15, 2023
In another video shortly before dawn, Imran Khan, sitting in front of Pakistan and the party flags at a desk decorated with spent teargas canisters, said that the LEAs were going to come once again
“They will teargas our people and do other such things, but you should know that they have no justification to do so.”
“The way the police attack our people… there is no precedent for this,” Khan said.
“Water canons, teargas… they shelled inside the house where there were servants and women.”
چیئرمین عمران خان کا قوم نے نام اہم ترین پیغام!
pic.twitter.com/nrDmkIkYp2— PTI (@PTIofficial) March 14, 2023
The PTI chief claimed that he was not appearing at the F-8 Katcheri as terrorists had targeted the facility twice.
“They know I did not appear because of security, now they are preparing again,” said the PTI chief.
The former prime minister also claimed that in order to “avoid anarchy”, he had signed an undertaking, and his counsel Ishtiaq A Khan tried presenting the surety to the Islamabad police deputy inspector general (DIG) sent to arrest him.
“And as per code of criminal procedure’s section 76 if a surety bond is given to arresting officer then he cannot make the arrest,” said the PTI chief.
He further claimed that after this there was no reason for the police to arrest him. However, the PTI chief alleged that the DIG refused to take the bond on purpose as his arrest was part of the “London plan”.
“In the London plan, it has been decided to put Imran Khan in jail, defeat PTI, and finish all cases of Nawaz Sharif. Putting me in jail is part of the London plan. This has no relation with the law and I have not committed any crime,” said the PTI chief.
