Sindh Police say Safdar's arrest 'according to the law', then deletes tweet

KARACHI: The Sindh Police's Digital Media Cell on Monday initially announced on Twitter that PML-N leader Captain Safdar had been arrested "according to the law" and that the investigation against him will proceed with impartiality and according to the merits of the case, but then deleted the tweet, adding to confusion over the matter.

A screenshot of the now deleted tweet put out by the Sindh Police's Digital Media Cell. The statement came amidst the PML-N leadership's claims that Captain Safdar was arrested by Sindh Police under pressure. Captain Safdar, Nawaz Sharif's son-in-law and Maryam Nawaz's spouse, was arrested early on Monday by Sindh Police for, among other charges, allegedly violating the sanctity of Quaid-e-Azam's Mazar (also called Mazar-e-Quaid).

The sanctity of the Quaid's Mazar is protected by The Quaid-i-Azam's Mazar (Protection and Maintenance) Ordinance, 1971, which explicitly forbids political activities within the premises of the mausoleum.

"No person shall organise, convene or take part in any meeting or demonstration or procession or engage in political activity within the premises of Quaid's mausoleum or within a distance of ten feet from the outer boundary thereof," reads the law on the matter. Moreover, the ordinance underscores that no person "shall do any act or behave in any manner which is or tends to be derogatory to the sanctity and dignity of the Quaid-i-Azam's Mazar."

An offense under this law carries the penalty of a maximum three years of imprisonment and/or a fine. "Murad Ali Shah personally confirmed to me that his [Sindh] police had nothing to do with this.