A Pakistani court on Tuesday remanded the president of the former primer Imran Khan’s party, Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, to the custody of the National Accountability Bureau till August 21 in a corruption case. Elahi,77, has been in jail in one or another case since the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf: party supporters allegedly attacked the military and state buildings on May 9, in reaction to Khan’s first arrest in a corruption probe.
According to the PTI party, there has been immense pressure on Elahi from the military establishment to quit the party, and on his refusal, he is re-arrested after securing bail. The NAB arrested Elahi on Monday after he was released from Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where he was detained under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance.
According to a court official, on Tuesday, the Lahore accountability court gave NAB Elahi’s custody till August 21 in a case related to bribes in development projects which he awarded when he was the chief minister of Punjab.
The NAB told the court that it wanted to interrogate the suspect for causing ”a loss of millions of rupees to the government exchequer against receipt of kickbacks.” Elahi’s son and former federal minister, Moonis Elahi, said in a tweet, “Pakistan was created through a democratic movement, and its sustainable development and stability is possible only with the best democracy and not with fake political cases, false accusations and forced arrests.”
Khan, 70, is currently lodged in the Attock jail after being convicted in the Toshakhana corruption case. The Election Commission, following his conviction, barred the politician from participating in political activities for five years.
Khan has been at the centre of political turmoil since he was ousted last year from power in a no-confidence vote, raising concerns about Pakistan’s stability as the cash-strapped country deals with an economic crisis.
In the crackdown on the PTI, over 150 former lawmakers and leaders of the party joined the ‘king’s party’ Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) and PTI-Parliamentarians led by Jahangir Khan Tareen and Pervaiz Khatak, respectively.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI)