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Pakistani authorities detain politicians supporting Imran Khan
In an overnight raid on the Parliament, police arrested at least 10 members of Khan’s party, deepening the political battle between the imprisoned ex-leader and the country’s powerful military.
Updated 2024-Oct-06 09:34
A group of men in dark suits facing a scrum of reporters holding up microphones and cell phones.
Some critics also labeled the criticism from P. I as hypocritical citing an incident in 2022 when three opposition lawmakers were detained in their rooms near the Parliament building during Mr.Sadiq the National Assembly speaker instructed a thorough inquiry into the arrests and asked for a report from the Islamabad Inspector General as indicated in a statement from his office.
The ruling party believed to be merely a facade for the military was the sole supporter of the police s actions.
Even the coalition partners of the government criticized the arrests on Tuesday expressing concerns about the future.
Syed Naveed Qamar a Pakistan Peoples Party member questioned what would occur the next day. Will they arrive for you at the Parliament s dais? Gandapur criticized journalists who did not support Khan s party calling them sellouts.
Gandapur s speech which used offensive language was heavily criticized by both his own party members and the public.
Pakistani police arrested at least 10 lawmakers belonging to the imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s political party in an hourslong raid on the Parliament building in Islamabad that began Monday night officials said.
The police sweep was the first time in recent memory that Pakistani lawmakers have been arrested while at the Parliament and it intensified the political turmoil gripping the country over the past nearly three years.
That crisis has pit Pakistan’s powerful military long seen as an invisible hand guiding the country’s politics against the still strong political force of Mr.Khan and his die hard supporters. The overnight police raid began around 8:30 p. M. On Monday night when dozens of police officers entered the building in the capital shortly after the end of a legislative session.
As word spread of the raid some lawmakers barricaded themselves inside their offices while others were pulled from their cars by police officers as they tried to leave the premises according to videos and witnesses.
The lights in the building went out late Monday night going back on only after the police sweep ended around 2 a.M. On Tuesday. The party members were arrested on charges related to antiterrorism laws according to court documents and leaders of Mr.Khan’s party Pakistan Tehreek i Insaf or P. T. I. At least one lawmaker who had been arrested was released from custody late on Tuesday court documents show.
The police did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The raid seemed to signal the lengths to which the security establishment is willing to go to squash Mr.Khan’s party analysts said even into the halls of Parliament. Whatever happened in the Parliament definitely a stand will have to be taken Sardar Ayaz Sadiq the speaker of the National Assembly said during a fraught session on Tuesday.
Khan the analyst commented that the speech has made the crisis seem insurmountable at the moment indicating challenging times ahead for P.As well as for the coalition government and the military both facing issues of public support and credibility.
During a recent rally in Peshawar to celebrate Pakistan s Independence Day Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province Ali Amin Gandapur addressed the military urging them to organize themselves.
He stated that he was not afraid of the army uniform suggesting that any attempt to prosecute Mr. Khan in a military court would not be taken lightly.
In the previous month the military detained a prominent ex spy leader who was close to Mr. Khan a first in Pakistan s history.
