The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday evening ordered police to immediately release former Prime Minister Imran Khan who was arrested on May 9 on the charges of corruption and corrupt practices, reported Xinhua.
The verdict was given on a plea of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party saying the arrest was illegal as it was made at the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) when Khan was seeking protective bail.
The three-member bench of the supreme court, headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial, ordered the immediate release of the PTI chairman, and said he could reapply for protective bail on Friday.
The court directed the Islamabad Police to keep Khan in a guest house at police headquarters until then.
The court also directed the police to let the former prime minister meet with his family members, lawyers and friends during his stay in the guest house.
Meanwhile, at least 10 people have been killed and over 1,750 others injured in Pakistan's clashes between protestors and police since Tuesday following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, hospital and police officials sources told Xinhua on Thursday.
Multiple sources from police and hospitals, on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that all the deceased are civilians, and the injured include 1,393 civilians and 357 policemen.
The clashes erupted after workers of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party thronged to the streets following his arrest.
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) detained Khan on Tuesday under alleged charges of corruption and corrupt practices from the premises of the Islamabad High Court when he was presented there for the hearing of some other cases against him.
The country's federal government has deployed the army in the capital Islamabad and the major cities of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces to stop protestors and ensure law and order.
- Pakistani ex PM
- Imran Khan
- Court
Source: www.dailyfinland.fi
