Pakistani police storm home of former PM Khan, arrest 61
LAHORE, Islamabad — Pakistani police stormed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s residence in the eastern city of Lahore on Saturday and arrested 61 people amid tear gas and clashes between Khan’s supporters and police, officials said.
Senior police officer Suhail Sukhera, who led the operation in an upscale Lahore neighborhood, said police acted to remove a barricade erected by members of Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf party and his supporters. He said they blocked the lanes around Khan’s residence with concrete blocks, felled trees, tents and a parked truck.
Khan was not in the home, having traveled to Islamabad to appear before a judge to face charges he sold state gifts while in office and hid his assets. The judge postponed that hearing until March 30.
Baton-wielding Khan supporters attempted to resist police by throwing stones and Molotov cocktails, and a man on the roof of Khan’s residence opened fire, Sukhera said. At least three officers were injured.
Sukhera said police broke open the main door of Khan’s residence and found automatic weapons, Molotov cocktails, iron rods and batons used in attacks on police during the week. Sukhera said that inside the sprawling residence, illegal structures had been erected to shelter people involved in attacks on police that have injured dozens of officers.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said police would do a search of Khan’s home, where they found bunkers and suspected more illegal weapons and ammunition were hidden.
In Islamabad, Khan and many of his supporters were armed, Sanaullah said.
Witnesses in Lahore said police attempted to disperse Khan’s supporters by firing tear gas.
Khan’s lawyer appeared in an Islamabad court Saturday after a top court Friday suspended Khan’s arrest warrant, giving him a reprieve to travel to Islamabad and face charges in the graft case without being detained.
Khan had been holed up at his home in Lahore since Tuesday after failing to appear at an earlier hearing in the case. His supporters hurled rocks and clashed with baton-wielding police for two days to protect the former premier from arrest.
Khan made a plea to his supporters through a recorded video message, urging them to fight for their rights. “If they send me to jail, or if I am killed, you have to show you can fight without me as well,” he said in the video.
Khan’s motorcade arrived Saturday near the judicial complex in Islamabad, where his supporters also clashed with police who prevented them from entering the complex.
The court allowed Khan, who claimed he could not enter the judicial building because of the chaos, to register his appearance from inside his vehicle. Khan’s supporters set two police vehicles and several motorcycles on fire while dispersing, according to the law minister.