In the early hours of Thursday, Pakistan’s former Interior Minister in the Imran Khan-led government and Awami Muslim League leader Sheikh Rashid was arrested by Islamabad Police. Rashid was arrested for alleging that the former President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari had hatched a conspiracy to assassinate former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Sheikh Rashid, an ally of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and a close aide of Imran Khan was arrested on the complaint filed by Raja Inayat-ur-Rehman, a vice president of Rawalpindi Division of the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) on January 27.
Rehman said in the FIR filed at the Aabpara Police Station that the AML chief attempted to disparage a former president and put the PPP co-chairman and his family in “permanent danger”.
The FIR was registered under sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups, etc) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Meanwhile, the PTI chief Imran Khan has condemned the arrest of his ally and slammed the alleged “vindictive and biased caretaker government.”
“Never in our history have we had such a biased, vindictive caretaker government appointed by a totally discredited ECP. Question is: can Pak afford a street movement which we are being pushed towards at a time when we have been bankrupted by the imported government?” he tweeted.
Strongly condemn arrest of Sh Rasheed.Never in our history have we had such a biased, vindictive Caretaker govt appt by totally discredited ECP. Question is can Pak afford a street movement which we are being pushed towards at a time when we have been bankrupted by Imported Govt?
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) February 1, 2023
Notably, the police reportedly told journalists that they had found a bottle of liquor and a weapon in Rashid’s possession. The former interior minister was allegedly “intoxicated” when he was apprehended, according to the police.
He was initially detained by the Muree Police, who then turned him over to the Islamabad Police, who then transferred him to the Aabpara Police Station.
After his medical examination was conducted at the Policlinic Hospital, Sheikh Rashid was moved to Secretariat Police Station. Rashid has claimed that Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah is behind his arrest.
The arrest comes after PTI chief Imran Khan had in a statement claimed that Asif Ali Zardari has hatched a ‘Plan C’ to assassinate him and for this purpose, Zardari has given the money of the Sindh government to a terrorist organisation.
Interestingly, On January 25, Pakistan’s former information minister and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhary was arrested for threatening members of the country’s Election Commission and their families.
Chaudhary had claimed that the Shehbaz Sharif-led government was planning to get PTI chief and former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan arrested.
