Imran Khan's arrest declared illegal by top court
The Pak Supreme Court orders Imran Khan's immediate release. The apex court lambasts the National Accountability Bureau for arresting Khan from the premises of the Islamabad High Court, saying that the anti-graft agency has committed 'contempt of court'
Highlights:
- Chief Justice calls Imran's arrest illegal; orders his immediate release
- Imran asks supporters to remain calm
- The PTI chief will not be treated as prisoner
- Chief Justice lambasts National Accountability Bureau
- Court should have taken suo motu notice of violence during protests, says Khawaja Asif
Pakistan's Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday has termed the arrest of PTI Chairman Imran Khan in the Al-Qadir Trust case "illegal", as reported by Pakistani media.
The court also instructed that Imran should be released immediately.
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The top court said that the PTI chief would be kept at the Police Lines Guest House but would not be considered a prisoner, and directed the Islamabad police chief to ensure the ex-premier's security, as reported by DAWN.com.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial said, "The government would have to guarantee Imran's security." He had a brief exchange of words with Khan before the order was issued.
The top court also directed the former prime minister to approach the Islamabad High Court.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), whose protests have resulted in deadly clashes with police across the country, applauded the decision, while the government was unhappy with the development.
The three-member bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar issued the verdict on PTI's petition challenging Khan's arrest.
"It is good seeing you," CJP Bandial told Khan when he was presented before the three-member bench, and also asked him to "condemn" the violent protests that took place as a result of the arrest.
Imran Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), was presented on Thursday before a three-member panel as per the Supreme Court's directive.
The SC had earlier directed authorities concerned to summon Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan before the three-member bench by 4:30pm Pakistan time today.
However, the PTI chief was taken to court an hour after the stipulated time in a convoy of 15 vehicles.
Imran asks supporters to remain calm
Imran stated that no harm should be done to the nation after the SC issued the ruling and he urged his supporters to keep calm.
"We only want elections in the country," he said.
The PTI leader claimed that his lawyers had informed him the previous day that "there is anarchy in the country" and declared, "We don't want anarchy in the country."
He added that although people had come to the court seeking justice, he had actually been assaulted with clubs. Even murderers are not handled in this manner, said Imran.
The former PM continued by claiming he had no idea what was going on in the nation. He bemoaned being apprehended as if he were a terrorist and questioned how he was to blame for the demonstrations.
Separately, in an informal conversation with journalists after the proceedings, Imran was asked whether he was aware of the situation in the country.
"I am completely unaware of it," the PTI chief replied.
Imran responded with a smile when asked if anyone else except the NAB officers had interacted with him while he was being held.
The PTI chief also expressed his ignorance of the deaths during recent protests across the country. "I did not have access to the television or telephone," he told reporters.
Imran also expressed surprise at the arrest of PTI leader Asad Umar. "Nobody informed me about these matters," he said.
The PTI chief further lamented that more than 100 cases were registered against him and contended that a party that wanted elections could never want anarchy. "Those who want anarchy are against elections."
Imran a guest, not a prisoner
Imran Khan has entered the Supreme Court premises as a prisoner, but left as a guest.
He was seen leaving in a sedan after the court hearing.
PTI leader Babar Azam said that former prime minister Imran Khan is now in the Supreme Court's custody, DAWN has reported.
The Supreme Court has told the PTI chairman to appear before the Islamabad High Court on Friday, he said.
During the hearing, Justice Mazhar remarked that the SC will order the high court to schedule a hearing for tomorrow at 11am Pakistan time, and the CJP announced that Mansoor Usman Awan, the attorney general of Pakistan (AGP), would serve as the security guarantor.
The AGP then said that he had been informed that the Islamabad Police Lines had been converted into a sub-jail.
"Is he staying there in a bungalow or a guest house?" Islamabad IG responded that Imran had been held in a guest house in response to Justice Mazhar's question.
"Can lawyers and other people meet with him?" Judge Bandial asked.
The IG responded that only NAB could answer the question because he was not aware of that.
Here, the CJP said that the court will make a decision right away and then requested a list of people Imran wished to meet. "We will grant someone's request for permission if they want to spend the night.
"Ten people will stay with you … spend time with them and go to sleep," he added.
Imran once pleaded with the court to permit him to remain at his Banigala home in Islamabad, but the CJP informed him that he was under the court's watchful eye.
Justice Bandial reiterated his orders to the government to provide all necessary security preparations for Imran, saying, "We don't want you to be hurt."
The chief judge stated, "The case will resume from where the matters became complicated," and added that a written order would be made shortly.
The hearing
Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial also lambasted the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for arresting Khan from the premises of the Islamabad High Court, saying that the anti-graft agency has committed "contempt of court", reports Pakistani news outlet The News International.
"The court will issue an appropriate order today," the chief justice earlier said, adding that the court was "very serious" about the matter.
One of Imran's lawyers, Hamid Khan, appeared on the rostrum and informed the apex court that his client had approached the Islamabad High Court (IHC) for pre-arrest bail.
The lawyer said that Imran was in the process of getting his biometrics done when he was arrested, reports DAWN.
"Rangers misbehaved with Imran Khan and arrested him," Hamid said.
Chief Justice Bandial observed that court records showed that the case had not been fixed for hearing.
The lawyer told the court that the appeal could not be filed without completing the biometric process.
Imran's political party had filed a petition in the Supreme Court a day earlier challenging the Islamabad High Court's decision calling party chief Imran Khan's arrest by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) "illegal".
Initially, the petition was returned to the PTI after registrar's office attached objections to the plea.
The registrar's office stated that the PTI chief did not approach the relevant forum, adding that he could file an intra-court appeal, reports The News International.
It further stated that the petition did not have the signatures of the PTI chief.
But, later on Wednesday, the PTI addressed the objections of the registrar's office and it was accepted for a hearing.
Following Khan's arrest on Tuesday inside the IHC, the PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi summoned an emergency meeting of the seven-member committee to review the situation and devise a comprehensive strategy to secure the safe and early release of the party chair.
The senior PTI leader had announced the party's plan to move the apex court.
Reactions after SC verdict on Imran
PML-N chief Maryam Nawaz has mocked the Supreme Court's decision of rescuing Imran, saying the chief justice was "very happy to release a criminal" when he invalidated the circumstances surrounding Imran Khan's detention.
The PTI is ecstatic that the Supreme Court has ruled that Imran's arrest was unconstitutional.
According to the PTI's official Twitter account, "the nation of Pakistan welcomes the decision of the Supreme Court which annulled the arrest of Chairman Imran Khan."
PTI's Usman Dar has hailed the decision, terming it as "historic".
"My important message to the great people of Sialkot and the workers and organisational officials of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf! Today at 7pm, peacefully reached Ghantaghar Chowk to express solidarity with the Supreme Court of Pakistan and to express gratitude for the release of Chairman Imran Khan," he said in a video on his official Twitter account.
PTI Chairman Imran Khan's ex-wife Jemima Goldsmith says that "finally sense prevailed" as she reacted to the Supreme Court's order finding the ex-prime minister's arrest unlawful.
Michael Kugelman, South Asia Institute Director for the Wilson Center, says that the Supreme Court has "blazed an independent trail during the recent stages of the political crisis".
"Pakistan's Supreme Court has blazed an independent trail during the recent stages of the political crisis. It has pushed back on government plans to delay provincial elections, and now it has questioned the legality of Imran Khan's arrest."
Pakistan President Arif Alvi in a letter to the country's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has condemned the way former prime minister Imran Khan was arrested.
"I would like to draw your attention to the way Imran Khan was arrested. The people of Pakistan and I were shocked to see the video of this incident. The video shows the abuse of a former prime minister. Imran Khan is a popular leader and the head of a major political party," the president wrote, reports Dawn.
He also said that while the right to protest is a constitutional right of any person, it should remain "within the bounds of the law".
Meanwhile, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that the Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N) leadership has not been given treatment like Imran Khan has by the apex court.
He lamented over the "double standards" while speaking at a briefing on Thursday (11 May). Reacting to the Pakistan Supreme Court's judgment of declaring PTI chief Imran's arrest "unlawful", he questioned why were PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and several other "of our people were not dispensed justice in this manner".
