Following the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), the reaction of the party’s leader Fawad Chaudhry has caused quite a stir.
On Tuesday, the PTI chief travelled to the federal capital for an appearance in the IHC to seek an extension of his bail in FIRs registered against him for making statements against state institutions, several PTI leaders, including Fawad Chaudhry and his brother Faisal Chaudhry Advocate, were present in the courtroom, as were many media persons.
Earlier, Khan had already secured bail in seven cases from an anti-terrorism court till May 23.
Given this, PTI leaders were expecting Khan to be granted an extension in the two remaining bails.
However, to the shock of arguably the entire country, when the PTI chairman was getting his biometrics done, the Rangers personnel arrested him in connection with a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) investigation in the Al-Qadir Trust case.
Following the developments, Advocate Faisal Chaudhry opened a window of the IHC and asked lawyers present outside to protest.
The lawyers complied; however, Fawad was not present at the scene.
According to a BBC report, Fawad grabbed his brother by the hand and was heard saying: “Imran phharya gaya ay, chal aaja [Irman Khan has been arrested. Let’s go.]”
After this, he went back and sat on his chair in the courtroom, the British media reported.
It must be noted that while protests erupted in various cities across the country following Khan’s arrest, the IHC declared the arrest legal late on Tuesday.
Today, the PTI chief is set to appear before an accountability court for a hearing on the Al-Qadir Trust case.
What is Al-Qadir Trust case?
The former prime minister, along with his wife Bushra Bibi and other PTI leaders, is facing a NAB inquiry related to a settlement between the PTI government and a property tycoon, which reportedly caused a loss of 190 million pounds to the national exchequer.
As per the charges, Khan and other accused allegedly adjusted Rs50 billion — 190 million pounds at the time — sent by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to the government.
They are also accused of getting undue benefit in the form of over 458 kanals of land at Mouza Bakrala, Sohawa, to establish Al Qadir University.
