UPDATE - Pakistani court grants bail to ex-Premier Imran Khan in corruption case

UPDATES WITH MORE COMMENTS BY GOVERNMENT, ANOTHER COURT ORDER, ADDS COMMENTS BY KHAN

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – The Islamabad High Court on Friday granted bail to Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan in a corruption case, local media reported.

Khan filed a bail petition after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Pakistan’s anti-corruption watchdog, had filed a corruption case against the popular opposition leader.

The court granted bail for two weeks, according to local broadcasters.

In another case, the same court granted bail for 10 days to Khan and ordered authorities against arresting Khan for the same time period.

Police from the Punjab province had reached Islamabad to arrest the main opposition leader, according to Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Babar Awan.

Speaking to reporters while waiting for the court to resume proceedings, Khan said he was “shown (arrest) warrant for the first time when they took me to jail” on Tuesday.

“This happens in the law of the jungle and the army abducts. Where did the police go? Where did the law go?” he asked, referring to dramatic events which unfolded inside the Islamabad court complex on Tuesday when Khan was arrested by what the PTI said were personnel from paramilitary Rangers.

“The law of the jungle has been instated in the country. It seems as if martial law has been declared,” Khan alleged, according to videos of his informal chat with journalists.

- Government aghast

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday reviewed the overall political situation in the country amid violent protests which erupted after his predecessor Khan was arrested this week.

According to state-run Radio Pakistan, Sharif chaired a federal Cabinet meeting in the capital Islamabad, which discussed the “overall political and law and order situation in the country.”

Lamenting violence against public infrastructure, Sharif blamed Khan-led PTI party for “trying to push the country, which is already facing a myriad of challenges, towards destruction,” Daily Dawn reported.

Khan was arrested by the NAB from the Islamabad High Court on Tuesday, which the PTI called “abduction.”

Pakistan’s Supreme Court Thursday declared Khan’s arrest illegal and ordered his immediate release. However, Khan was directed to appear before the Islamabad High Court on Friday which is hearing the bail petition by Khan in the NAB case filed against the former premier and his wife, Bushra Bibi.

Fearing the “re-arrest” of Khan, his PTI called for nationwide protests on Friday and urged its workers to reach Islamabad in solidarity with Khan. Reports of clashes between police and PTI workers from around the capital were also received.

The PTI also said its leaders and activists, including Shireen Mazari and Yasmin Rashid, were arrested.

Khan attended the Islamabad High Court hearing on Friday following the top court’s order.

Sharif-led federal Cabinet warned and “vowed to make an example out of those who resorted to organized terrorism against the state by taking strict action.”

The federal government also “condemned” Pakistan’s Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial in the “open and shut case” against Khan, calling his Thursday order as “sheer misconduct.”

Violent protests erupted across Pakistan on Tuesday after Khan was arrested. Authorities snapped mobile internet and blocked social media sites.

Hospital sources confirmed seven people have been killed and over 100 wounded since protests started, while over 1,200 have been arrested across the country.

The PTI had earlier claimed that 47 of its workers were killed during the protests but in its latest statement, it revised the count to 26, which Anadolu could not independently verify.

The federal government has deployed military in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces besides Islamabad to contain the situation.

- Allegations against Khan

Khan was arrested on Tuesday and taken into custody by the country’s paramilitary troops, Rangers, from the Islamabad High Court where he was attending the hearing of his bail application as, according to Khan, the government has filed over 120 cases against him during the last one year.

He was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau in connection with alleged corruption involving the Al Qadir University Trust.

It is claimed that the cricketer-turned-politician and his wife received billions of rupees and a large piece of costly land to build the educational institution in return for releasing an amount of £190 million ($239 million) to a property tycoon in 2020.

The amount was identified and returned to the country by the UK’s National Crime Agency, following a settlement with real estate tycoon Malik Riaz in 2019.

Pakistan’s anti-corruption body alleges that Khan’s PTI government struck a deal with Riaz that caused a loss of more than $239 million to the national exchequer, in a quid pro quo arrangement with the businessman.

Khan and his party leaders, however, deny the allegations.

Khan, who served as prime minister of Pakistan from 2018-2022, lost a vote of confidence in parliament last April, one year short of completing his term.

In November, he survived an assassination attempt during a rally.

Since then, Khan has fallen out with the country’s powerful army, and is facing a plethora of cases, which his supporters say are politically motivated.