Massive protests rocked parts of Pakistan on Tuesday soon after the cash-strapped country’s anti-corruption agency arrested former prime minister Imran Khan at Islamabad High Court, amid calls for nationwide “shut down” by his party — Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

The cricketer-turned-politician was arrested by paramilitary Rangers in riot-control gear from outside the Islamabad High Court in connection with the Al-Qadir trust case when he had appeared for bail renewal.

Soon after Imran Khan’s arrest, his supporters took to streets to protest against the Shehbaz Sharif-led government.

Looking at the situation, the authorities have imposed Section 144 in Islamabad.

Dozens of supporters blocked streets in Khan’s hometown of Lahore, where police have been put on high alert. Protesters also blocked a major road in the port city of Karachi, according to Reuters witnesses.

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party called on supporters to “shut down Pakistan”.

“It’s your time, people of Pakistan. Khan has always stood for you, now its time to stand for him,” the PTI wrote on Twitter.

Currently, more than 120 cases are registered against the 70-year-old leader related to terrorism, blasphemy, murder, violence, and inciting violence.

Imran Khan’s arrest comes a day after the Pakistani army accused him of levelling baseless allegations against a senior officer of the spy agency ISI.

The chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, who travelled from Lahore to the federal capital Islamabad, was undergoing a biometric process at the court when the Rangers broke open the glass window and arrested him after beating lawyers and Khan’s security staff, according to senior party leader Shireen Mazari.

TV footage showed the Rangers grabbing Khan from the collar and bundling him into a prison van. The Rangers, which operate under the Interior Ministry, are usually commanded by officers on secondment from the army. “Khan has been arrested in a land transfer case to property tycoon Malik Riaz and is being handed over to National Accountability Bureau (NAB)”, a NAB official confirmed to PTI.

He said that Khan has been arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust case which is about the setting up of Al-Qadir University for Sufism in 2019 Sohawa area of Jhelum district of Punjab. “His arrest warrants were issued today morning and subsequently he is arrested,” he said.

In a pre-recorded video issued by the party after his arrest, Imran Khan said, “till the time these words of mine reach you, I will be arrested in a baseless case. This shows that fundamental rights and democracy in Pakistan have been buried.”

“All this is being done because they want me to accept the corrupt, imported government that has been forcefully imposed on us,” Khan said.

He said if someone has a warrant, they should directly bring it to me. “Bring the warrant, my lawyer will be there. I’m ready to go to jail myself,” Khan said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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