Explained: The terrorism case that has been slapped against Pakistan’s Imran Khan

Islamabad is on the edge with thousands of supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan camped outside his residence, chanting slogans and waving placards in the favour of their leader.

Hundreds of people gathered outside Khan’s house as news emerged that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chief had been slapped with a terrorism charge and could be arrested anytime on Monday. His supporters chanted slogans against the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who took over after Khan’s ouster in a confidence motion in April.

مورخ لکھے گا کہ پاکستان کی تاریخ میں پہلی بار ہوا کہ پاکستانیوں نے اپنے لیڈر @ImranKhanPTI کی حفاظت کے لیے راتیں جاگ کر گزارئیں۔#عمران_خان_ہماری_ریڈ_لائن pic.twitter.com/WE9RGNqSgo

— Muhammad Irfan Sadiq (@MeraEimanPak1) August 22, 2022

“If Imran Khan is arrested … we will take over Islamabad,” a former minister in his cabinet, Ali Amin Gandapur, said on Twitter. Former Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry also tweeted: “Wherever you are, reach Bani Gala today and show solidarity with Imran Khan”, referring to Khan’s house.

But, what is the case against Imran Khan? What charges does he face? How has the Opposition reacted to the news of his arrest? We take a closer look.

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The case

The former Pakistan prime minister was booked on Sunday under Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act (punishment for acts of terrorism) regarding his comments at his Islamabad rally on Saturday.

The case was filed after a FIR was registered against Khan at Islamabad’s Margalla police station on Saturday. The FIR, filed by a magistrate identified as Ali Javed, said that Khan during a rally at F-9 park had “terrorised and threatened top police officials and a respected female additional sessions judge”.

In his Saturday address, Imran had threatened to file cases against Islamabad’s inspector general of police and deputy inspector general of police and said: “We won’t spare you.”

Reacting to close aide, Shahbaz Gill, being arrested and then allegedly tortured, Imran Khan had said in his Saturday address, “You also get ready for it, we will also take action against you. All of you must be ashamed.”

The FIR stated that Imran’s speech was meant to terrorise police officials and the judiciary so that they refrain from carrying out their duties. “Terrorism has been spread, the country’s peace has been harmed,” the FIR stated, asking that legal action be pursued against Imran and an “exemplary punishment” be meted out.

Khan could face several years in prison for the new charges, which accuse him of threatening police officers and the judge.

Relief for Imran

The tension, however, was reduced after the Islamabad High Court granted the former Pakistan prime minister protective bail until Thursday in the matter.

The relief came as Khan’s lawyers, Babar Awan and Faisal Chaudhry argued that Khan was a “target of the ruling PDM (Pakistan Democratic Movement) for his fearless criticism, and extremely bold and blunt stance against corruption and corrupt politicians”.

As per a report in The Dawn, the lawyers said to the court, “To achieve this malicious agenda, acting in a most unfortunate and clumsy manner, a false and frivolous complaint has been registered against him (Imran Khan) by the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) police at the behest of the incumbent government.”

The plea further alleged that the government had decided to “cross all limits” to arrest Imran “under false accusations” and was “hell-bent to sort out the petitioner and his party at all costs”.

The government, in an illegal effort to settle a political score, has decided to “illegally and unlawfully victimise” the petitioner, it said, adding that the government had registered 17 FIRs against Imran.

It further said the most recent FIR against was “politically motivated”, in which Imran had been “falsely” involved with “mala fide intention and ulterior motives to humiliate” him.

In a statement, Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI) said the latest accusations against him were “frivolous”.

“We have serious reservations on this politically motivated move which leads towards further instability in the country,” it said.

Troubles for Imran Khan

Since his ouster from office, Imran Khan has been holding massive rallies across Pakistan, claiming that the no-trust motion against him was the result of a “foreign conspiracy”.

On Saturday, it was reported that YouTube services in the country faced disruptions during Khan’s speech and his live speech was also banned on television channels by the electronic media regulator.

The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) ordered all television channels to not show any live speeches of Khan, as he was leveling “baseless allegations and hate speech through his provocative statements against state institutions and officers”.

Reacting to the gag order, Khan later said, “The fascist imported government sunk to a new low today by banning live coverage of my speeches on TV and then blocking YouTube temporarily. All this after continuous intimidation of mediapersons and taking channels off air earlier.”

With inputs from agencies

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