Last Updated on: 16th July 2023, 04:27 am
Pakistan’s Supreme Court Orders The Release Of Former PM Imran Khan
Pakistan’s Supreme Court ruled that the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan earlier this week was “unlawful” and that he must be released immediately.
The announcement came a day after a court ruled that Khan could be held for eight days.
Khan was arrested Tuesday on charges of corruption. Since his arrest, violent clashes have erupted in several major Pakistani cities, with Khan’s supporters denouncing the powerful army.
On Wednesday evening, demonstrators tried to set fire to a police station in the capital Islamabad. Others, with a rare defiance, publicly questioned the military’s role in the country’s day-to-day life.
Amid the chaos, the military accused so-called “evil elements” of instigating attacks on security installations and accused the protesters of wanting to push Pakistan into a “civil war”.
Police said Thursday that at least ten people had been killed and 2,000 arrested.
Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaaf party called his arrest a “kidnapping” and vowed to crack down on it. But Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said Khan was arrested in connection with a case filed with Pakistan’s Anti-Corruption Court, in which Khan did not attend. Other party leaders were also arrested this week.
Political unrest ensues as the country remains mired in an economic crisis. Analysts warn that hopes the South Asian country can get a much-needed bailout from the International Monetary Fund are fading.
Also Read: Imran Khan Was Arrested By The Rangers in Islamabad