LAHORE: More contingents of police and the Rangers in the early morning of Wednesday reached Imran Khan’s Zaman Park residence where a stand-off between party supporters and law enforcers had been going on for more than 20 hours for the former prime minister’s arrest in the Toshakhana case.
A tense situation prevailed in Lahore on Wednesday morning as police made a fresh attempt to arrest Imran Khan. Many PTI supporters were taken into custody from around Zaman Park during the Wednesday clashes.
Subsequently, celebrations erupted at Zaman Park where the PTI supporters cheered “chasing the Rangers away.”
Earlier, the official PTI Twitter handle stated that open firing had begun by the Rangers and police with Imran’s residence under “extreme attack.”
The PTI workers and supporters had taken control of Khan’s residence following hours-long face-off with police. A local court in the federal capital had issued Imran’s arrest warrants and ordered the police to arrest the accused in the Toshakhana case over his non-appearance. After the deployment of Rangers, the PTI chairman, in a tweet claimed that the real intent behind his arrest is to abduct and assassinate him as the police have now resorted to live firing.
“From tear gas and water cannons, they have resorted to 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,” he said.
The district administration announced on Wednesday that all educational institutions would remain closed on account of the prevailing law and order situation in the city. A notification to this effect was also issued by Lahore Commissioner Ali Randhawa.
All public and private educational institutions will remain closed in Garhi Shahu, Jail Road, Mall Road and Mian Mir.
Meanwhile, the PTI chairman constituted a six-member emergency committee to overlook party matters in case of arrest. The committee includes PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Senator Saifullah Niazi, Senator Azam Swati, Ijaz Chaudhry, Murad Saeed and Ali Amin Gandapur. The emergency committee will overlook the matters if Imran Khan gets arrested, as per a statement issued by the political party.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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