LAHORE- Plea against Imran’s arrest warrants in Toshakhana case to be heard Wednesday,March 15; PTI chief again addresses supporters from inside residence, says more attempts to arrest underway.
A tense situation prevailed in Lahore in the early hours of Wednesday as more contingents were called to PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s Zaman Park residence — where a stand-off between party supporters and law enforcers has been going on for more than 14 hours — for the former prime minister’s arrest.
Amid calls from the party to yet again gather at Zaman Park, Imran addressed his supporters around 4:20am and said more attempts to arrest him were underway.
Speaking in a video message, Imran likened the day’s events to the situation in Illegally Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
“The way police attacked our people, there is no example of this. What is the reason for attacking a small number of people like this?”
Imran said to prevent any chaos, he had given an undertaking to the LHCBA president who then attempted to forward it to the DIG who was coming to arrest the PTI chief but the latter did not meet the president.
“According to Code of Criminal Procedure Section 76, if this surety bond is given to the arresting officer, then he can’t arrest,” Imran said.
The PTI chief said that the DIG had no reason to not accept the undertaking and pointed to ill-intentions. “This is part of the London plan and an agreement has been signed there to put Imran in jail, make the PTI fall and finish all cases against Nawaz Sharif,” Imran alleged.
He, however, stopped short of making any announcement.
Intermittent tear gas shelling was ongoing early Wednesday morning at Zaman Park with more police and Rangers personnel and vehicles deployed. At 3:36am, PTI’s social media focal person Azhar Mashwani claimed that shelling had begun again on Mall Road and Dharampura.
He alleged that “unknown persons” were supervising the operation while Lahore Capital City Police Officer Bilal Siddique Kamyana and Deputy Inspector General of Police Haider Ashraf were leading the operation on the ground(.dawn)
