Lahore(Pakistan): The Lahore High Court on Wednesday issued orders to stop police operations at Zaman Park till 10 am tomorrow morning, giving relief to former Pakistan Prime Minister and Pakistan Tahreek Insaaf (PTI) Chief Imran Khan. The orders from the court came hours after hours of scuffle between the police and PTI workers.
Before the court's orders, the law enforcement agencies continued their operation against the supporters of former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday to arrest him. LHC's Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh, while hearing a petition filed by PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry seeking to stop the "atrocities" outside Zaman Park, passed these orders. Earlier in the day, Imran Khan had made the statement that he skipped the earlier hearings for security reasons citing two attacks on judges.
PTI workers celebrated outside Zaman Park as law enforcement agencies pulled back. As per police, the court-ordered operation halted to accommodate Pakistan Super League matches, reported Dawn. "Police will not advance on Khan's residence until the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 8 cricket match is over," sources quoted police officials as saying.
After the withdrawal of the police, PTI chief Imran Khan came out of his residence, in a mask, and met the workers. The video was shared on PTI's Twitter account.
Lahore's Zaman Park area turned into a battleground for over 11 hours when Khan's supporters gathered there to stop police personnel from arresting the ousted Pakistan prime minister, resulting in injuries to dozens of policemen. The workers started throwing stones at the officials, while the police retaliated with water cannons and volleys of tear gas. Meanwhile, the law enforcers also arrested the PTI workers.
Khan was issued a non-bailable warrant in the Toshkhana case for not appearing before the court several times and was expected to be arrested today in the case. Earlier, the court had instructed the Punjab inspector general, chief secretary and Islamabad police (operations) head to appear in court by 3 pm, reported Dawn. On Wednesday morning, Islamabad Police, backed by Punjab Police and Rangers resumed efforts -- which began on Tuesday -- to arrest the ex-premier in connection with the Toshkhana case. Imran has skipped indictment several times, which led to the judge issuing non-bailable arrest warrants for him.
