Former Pakistan Foreign Minister and PTI leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi was arrested by the Islamabad police on Thursday and transferred to an unknown location.
A video shared by Qureshi’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf: party on Twitter shows plain-clothed men taking him away, with him waving at party workers before departing from the location where he was detained.
“Tehreek-e-Insaf Vice Chairman Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi has been arrested by the Islamabad Police and transferred to an unknown location,” the party tweeted on Thursday.
Vice Chairman @PTIofficial Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been arrested overnight. This is his message for PTI workers, supporters and concerned Pakistanis:
“The world must be made aware:
There is a very real propaganda campaign against PTI, attempting to position us as violent… https://t.co/TpT853pMr9
— Shah Mahmood Qureshi (@SMQureshiPTI) May 11, 2023
The party also said that PTI Chairman Spokesperson Musarat Cheema and Senator Ejaz Chaudhry were also abducted by Rangers from Islamabad.
The former foreign minister was taken into custody from the Gilgit-Baltistan House in Islamabad after a failed attempt by the police on Wednesday afternoon, reports said.
Along with @SMQureshiPTI , Chairman Spokesperson Musarat Cheema and Senator Ejaz Chaudhry have also been abducted by Rangers from Islamabad. Law of the jungle! #ReleaseImranKhan
— PTI (@PTIofficial) May 11, 2023
Qureshi’s arrest comes a day after senior PTI leader and party’s Senior Vice-President Fawad Chaudhry was arrested outside the Supreme Court in Islamabad on Wednesday.
Finally Islamabad Police Arrested PTI Leader #FawadChaudhry From Outside Supreme Court Premises pic.twitter.com/pqkjAONyo5— Adeel Sarfraz (@AhmedASarfraz) May 10, 2023
Chaudhry was arrested under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Ordinance (MPO) after he came out of the apex court premises and was shifted to the Secretariat Police Station.
PTI Secretary General Asad Umar was also arrested from the premises of the IHC — the same court from where Khan was taken into custody. The party earlier said five party leaders including Omar Sarfaraz Cheema, Ali Zaidi and Akram Usman, were arrested.
🚨🚨#BREAKING: #PTI claims since arrest of former PM @ImranKhanPTI, it’s 47 workers died, near 100 injured and 1000 arrested in clashes with security forces. PTI further says 5 party leaders arrested and authorities raided homes of 9 PTI officials. pic.twitter.com/PagTJmiEot— Asad Ali Toor (@AsadAToor) May 10, 2023
The political turmoil in Pakistan reached new heights on Wednesday as violent protests spread across the country, prompting the government to call in the military for assistance.
Imran Khan was sent to an eight-day physical remand to the National Accountability Bureau. Khan’s dramatic arrest on Tuesday sparked widespread violent protests across Pakistan, leaving at least eight people dead and nearly 300 others injured in clashes between protesters and law enforcement agencies.