Police out to arrest former PM Imran Khan as Pakistan braces itself for protests

LAHORE – Pakistani police said former premier Imran Khan was evading arrest at his residence in Lahore after a court order, while his close aides warned of a stand-off between security forces and his supporters at the scene. 

Mr Khan, 70, has drawn

tens of thousands to his rallies in recent months

and his arrest could bring them to the streets, posing a major distraction for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government, which is racing to secure bailout loans from the International Monetary Fund as the country teeters on the edge of bankruptcy.  

“I bow only in front of God and no other power or institution,” Mr Khan told cheering supporters. “This is our war for real freedom,” he added, blaming Mr Sharif and his government for sweeping corruption. 

Mr Khan and his party have been demanding early elections, and in the past, have said they will court arrest to push their demand for snap polls.

Mr Sharif has dismissed their demands, saying his government will complete its term, which ends in August. 

A police team arrived at Mr Khan’s private residence to arrest him on Sunday and present him before a court, but he was not immediately found, police officials said.

Mr Akbar Nasir Khan, inspector-general of the Islamabad police, told local media that the former leader has to be presented before the court on Tuesday. “The police must arrest him,” he told ARY Television. “We appeal to the people not to hinder the legal process.”

An official from Mr Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said the former cricket star was still at his residence, which was surrounded with tents put up by supporters in the past few months to defend their leader in the event of an arrest. Party leaders are also taking to social media to urge supporters to gather at Mr Khan’s home. 

Mr Hammad Azhar, a senior PTI leader, told Bloomberg News: “Attempting to arrest Imran Khan on fake and flimsy cases will be extremely destabilising in a system that is already under stress. There will be countrywide protests.” 

Soon after police surrounded his Lahore home, Mr Khan tweeted: “What future can a country have when crooks are thrust as rulers upon it?”

Arrest order

A Pakistani court issued an arrest warrant against Mr Khan last week after he did not appear at a hearing for a complaint over his failure to declare his assets.

The Election Commission in October disqualified him for allegedly hiding money earned from selling state gifts he received when he was prime minister. Mr Khan has denied any wrongdoing. 

He attended multiple court hearings last week, emerging for the first time in months since

he was shot and wounded in the leg

during a street protest in November.

Mr Khan has blamed Mr Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and a general in the country’s powerful spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence, for the attack. All three have denied his allegation.

Mr Khan’s arrest will exacerbate political tensions as the country struggles with a widespread economic crisis. Rating agencies have downgraded Pakistan deeper into junk on concerns over debt payments as the country has neared default. Foreign exchange reserves have dropped to cover less than a month of imports. Bloomberg