Pakistan's Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, whose arrest on corruption charges earlier this week sparked a wave of violence across the country by his supporters.
The Supreme Court ruled Khan’s arrest two days ago was illegal and, while it freed him from custody, it ordered him kept under protection of security forces in a safe location in the capital, Islamabad. The head of his legal team, Babar Awan, underlined that Khan is a “free citizen” and will be allowed to meet with lawyers and supporters. Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial urged Khan to appeal to his supporters to remain peaceful.
The ruling infuriated the government, with multiple officials accusing the chief justice of bias toward Khan. Chief Justice Bandial “now should hoist the flag of Imran Khan’s party on the Supreme Court, or he should declare that the court is a sub-office of Imran’s party,” Azam Tarar, an adviser for Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, told reporters.
The spark was the former leader's dramatic arrest on Tuesday. Khan was in court for one set of charges, when anti-graft agents barged in, dragged him away and shoved him into an armored vehicle in connection to other charges. In an address to the nation late Wednesday, Sharif said Khan was arrested because of his involvement in corruption, and that there was evidence backing up these charges.
“We will arrest all those who disrupted law and order,” said Mohson Naqvi, the chief minister in Punjab.
Law Law Latest News, Law Law Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: NBCNews - 🏆 10. / 86 Read more »
Source: Forbes - 🏆 394. / 53 Read more »
Source: WashTimes - 🏆 235. / 63 Read more »
Source: cnni - 🏆 326. / 59 Read more »