Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief and ex-Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan on Friday night finally left the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) premises for his Zaman Park residence in Lahore after an 11-hour-long drama, reported Geo News.
Khan was at the IHC for hours after he decided to stay within the court’s premises till he got a written verdict of his bail as he feared that the police might arrest him again once he got out.
“Get ready for peaceful protest. I am illegally detained for the last 3 hours despite my bail being approved,” said Khan before leaving the IHC premise in a video release posted by the PTI Twitter handle.
He said that the court has granted him the bail and there is no case against him still he is held back, adding that powerful persons are behaving in an unconstitutional way and are not listening to the court’s order.
Khan, who is on his way to Lahore, has said Islamabad Inspector General of Police (IG) Akbar Nasir tried his best to retain him at the capital’s high court.
“They did not let us leave for three hours, saying that it’s dangerous outside,” the former prime minister said in a video message from a vehicle in which he is travelling to Punjab’s capital.
He added that he told the IG that “we will tell the entire Pakistan that you are kidnapping [me], retaining [me] forcefully”.
The PTI chief said the Islamabad police chief let him go under this “pressure”.
Moreover, he continued, “When we came out, the roads were empty. There was no danger of any kind.”
He said he was expected to reach Lahore in the next three hours.
Khan was arrested from the IHC premises by paramilitary forces on Tuesday (May 9), which triggered violent protests across the country. But the Supreme Court nullified his arrest and ordered authorities concerned to release him.
The PTI chief was at the IHC after he appeared there today on Supreme Court’s orders to seek bail in multiple cases registered against him, where he got blanket relief.
In the first relief today, a two-member special divisional bench granted two-week bail to the former prime minister in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case, and later, the court barred authorities from arresting him till May 17 in any new case filed against him till May 9 — the day he was detained in the corruption case, which led to deadly countrywide protests.
Then, he sought transitory bail in four cases lodged against him in Lahore, in which the court awarded him bail till May 22 in the Zille Shah murder case, then, another bench barred authorities from arresting the former prime minister till the morning of May 15 in any case, no matter what their nature may be while hearing the bail petition filed against three terrorism cases.
Meanwhile, intermittent aerial firing took place around the IHC premises, prompting authorities to put security on high alert. Islamabad police’s spokesperson said no one was injured as a result of the firing, reported Geo News.
“IG Islamabad himself is reviewing the security arrangements. Court orders will be fully implemented. Islamabad Police is responsible for Imran Khan’s security. Imran Khan’s cooperation is essential in this regard. The Supreme Court has entrusted the responsibility of Imran Khan to the Islamabad Police. Road clearance is being taken,” said the spokesman of Islamabad Capital Police.