PTI Chairman Imran Khan has decided to seek immunity against his arrest in a terror case filed against him Sunday night, by filing a pre-arrest bail plea in the Islamabad High Court.
PTI lawyer Faisal Chaudhry said that the party’s legal team will file the plea in IHC on Khan’s behalf.
A first information report (FIR) was registered against former prime minister Khan under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) for threatening an additional sessions judge and senior police officers of the Islamabad Police at a rally in the federal capital’s F-9 Park.
Interior ministry seeks permission for arrest from PM
Meanwhile, the interior ministry has asked written permission from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office to arrest Khan following the registration of the case.
According to sources, the PTI chairman has left his Bani Gala residence to avoid arrest. It is being reported that he may have left for Lahore or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
However, PTI leader Faisal Vawda said that Khan is still at Bani Gala.
According to The News, the interior ministry has sought written permission from PM Office for the arrest of the PTI chair. Sources said the arrest will be made with the consensus of all parties in the ruling alliance.
Meanwhile, PPP leader and former president Asif Ali Zardari has opposed the arrest of Imran Khan. He believes that the arrest will cause political damage to the ruling alliance.
On the other hand, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) President Maulana Fazlur Rehman did not give a clear viewpoint on Imran Khan’s arrest as PTI leader Murad Saeed claimed on Sunday night that the arrest warrants for Imran Khan had been issued.
Police deployed around Bani Gala
Additional police force has been deployed outside Imran Khan’s Bani Gala residence and the road leading to his residence has also been closed for unauthorised people, allowing only people close to him and the residents of the area to enter, sources told Geo News hours after the registration of the case.
According to the The News , it is not yet decided whether Imran Khan would be arrested or put under house arrest, sources engaged in sketching the strategy of the operation told The News.
“Negotiations with Imran Khan are under way, as the PTI leader wants to avoid arrest or house arrest,” added the sources, saying that the authorities have multiple plans to handle the situation with the help of law-enforcement agencies, but were waiting for a green signal from the quarters concerned.
“Imran Khan is seeking the facility to approach the higher judiciary for obtaining relief, but he will have to surrender before the police as the first step,” the sources added.
Case registered against Imran Khan
The FIR registered against Khan states that he threatened Additional Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry and police officers at a rally in F-9 Park to “terrorise” police officials and judiciary. The main aim of the intimidation was to prevent the police officers and judiciary from carrying out their legal obligations, says the FIR.
The FIR was registered on the complaint of Magistrate Ali Javed in Islamabad’s Margalla Police Station under Section 7 of ATA.
The FIR states that the PTI chairman threatened Additional Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry and police officers at a rally in F-9 Park to “terrorise” police officials and judiciary. The main aim of the intimidation was to prevent the police officers and judiciary from carrying out their legal obligations, says the FIR.
