Pakistani police have filed terrorism charges against former prime minister Imran Khan, authorities said, escalating political tensions in the country as the ousted premier holds mass rallies seeking to return to office.
The charges come over a speech Khan gave in Islamabad on Saturday in which he vowed to sue police officers and a female judge and alleged that a close aide had been tortured after his arrest.
Khan appeared to still be free and has not addressed the police charge sheet being lodged against him.
Supporters of Imran Khan’s party gather outside his residence in Islamabad (Anjum Naveed/AP)
Khan’s political party — Tehreek-e-Insaf, now in opposition — published online videos showing supporters surrounding his home to potentially stop police from reaching it.
Hundreds remained there early on Monday. Tehreek-e-Insaf warned it will hold nationwide rallies if Khan is arrested.
His lawyer Bawar Awan filed a request to Islamabad’s High Court seeking protective bail for Khan, which would protect him from being arrested.
Under Pakistan’s legal system, police file what is known as a first information report about charges against an accused person to a magistrate judge, who allows the investigation to move forward. Typically, police then arrest and question the accused.
The report against Khan includes evidence from magistrate Judge Ali Javed, who described being at the Islamabad rally on Saturday and hearing Khan criticise the inspector-general of Pakistan’s police and another judge.
Khan reportedly went on to say: “You also get ready for it, we will also take action against you. All of you must be ashamed.”
Khan could face several years in prison from the new charges. However, he hass not been detained on other lesser charges against him in his recent campaigning against the government.
The 69-year-old was ousted in April in a no-confidence vote (KM Chaudary/AP)
The Pakistani judiciary has a history of politicisation and taking sides in power struggles between the military, the civilian government and opposition politicians, according to Washington-based advocacy group Freedom House.
Khan came to power in 2018, promising to break the pattern of family rule in Pakistan. His opponents contend he was elected with help from the powerful military, which has ruled the country for half of its 75-year history.
In seeking Khan’s removal earlier this year, the opposition accused him of economic mismanagement as inflation soared and the Pakistani rupee plummeted in value.
The parliament’s no-confidence vote in April that ousted him capped months of political turmoil and a constitutional crisis that required the Supreme Court to step in. Meanwhile, it appeared the military similarly had cooled to the former cricket star.
Khan alleged without providing evidence that the Pakistani military took part in a US plot to oust him. Washington, the Pakistani military and the government of Khan’s successor, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, have all denied that.
Meanwhile, Khan has been carrying out a series of mass rallies trying to pressure Mr Sharif’s government.
Imran Khan’s successor as Prime Minister, Shahbaz Sharif (Alamy/PA)
In his latest speech on Sunday night at a rally in the city of Rawalpindi, Khan said so-called “neutrals” were behind the recent crackdown against his party. He has in the past used the phrase “neutrals” for the military.
On Sunday, internet-access advocacy group NetBlocks said services in the country had blocked access to YouTube after Khan broadcast a live speech on the platform despite a ban issued by the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority.
Police arrested Khan’s political aide, Shahbaz Gill, earlier this month after he appeared on the private television channel ARY TV and urged soldiers and officers to refuse to obey “illegal orders” from the military leadership.
Gill was charged with treason, which under Pakistani law carries the death penalty. ARY also remains off-air in Pakistan after that broadcast.
Khan has alleged that police abused Gill in custody. Police say Gill suffers from asthma and has not been abused while detained. Khan’s speech on Saturday in Islamabad focused primarily on Gill’s arrest.
Police separately arrested journalist Jameel Farooqi in Karachi over his allegations that Gill had been tortured by police. Mr Farooqi is a vocal supporter of Khan.
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