Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was arrested at the Islamabad High Court on Tuesday by the country’s anti-corruption agency, leading to widespread violence across the nation.
The arrest came a day after the powerful military criticized Khan for repeatedly accusing a senior military officer of attempting to assassinate him and the former armed forces chief of orchestrating his removal from power last year.
Clashes between Khan’s supporters and the police erupted, resulting in the death of at least one protester. Following Khan’s arrest, his supporters engaged in protests, blocking major roads, storming military buildings in Lahore and Rawalpindi, and engaging in clashes with the police.
The Shehbaz Sharif government imposed an emergency order banning all gatherings in three of the country’s four provinces. Mobile data services were suspended, and access to social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube was restricted.
Here are some dramatical visuals of chaos ensuing in Pakistan:
Khan, a former cricket hero-turned-politician, has been resilient despite being ousted as prime minister in 2022. He was arrested based on allegations of property fraud, with accusations of receiving land worth up to 7 billion rupees ($24.7 million) from a property developer charged with money laundering in the UK. Khan has denied any wrongdoing.
Khan’s political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), called on supporters to “shut down Pakistan" in response to his arrest. Protests spread across cities and major highways, leading to clashes with law enforcement personnel. The military, Pakistan’s most influential institution, denied Khan’s accusations and stated that it no longer interferes in politics.
The arrest and ensuing violence occurred amid a severe economic crisis in Pakistan, marked by record-high inflation and sluggish growth. The International Monetary Fund bailout package has been delayed, and foreign exchange reserves are barely sufficient to cover a month’s imports.
Political infighting and military interventions have been common in Pakistan’s history. Khan’s arrest represents another chapter in the country’s tumultuous political landscape, with the arrest of several former prime ministers in the past.
The situation raises concerns about the potential for further unrest and instability in Pakistan.
(With agency inputs)
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