HD Revanna and son Prajwal Revanna are facing a probe over allegations of sexual harassment by a woman who worked in their household
world1 day ago
A Pakistani court on Thursday extended a pause in the effort to arrest former prime minister Imran Khan, a sign of easing tension in the country's cultural capital Lahore after clashes erupted this week when police tried to detain him.
The decision is a reprieve for Khan, who was due to be arrested a few hours earlier. The Lahore High Court ordered police to suspend the plan to arrest the 70-year-old opposition leader until Friday. It also asked Khan's legal team for talks to resolve the issue.
Thursday's order sent a wave of relief through Khan's stick-wielding supporters, who were prepared to prevent police from reaching Khan's house in Lahore, the capital of Punjab province. Despite the order, however, police and paramilitary rangers deployed for Khan’s arrest were not immediately withdrawn.
Usman Anwar, the police chief in the Punjab province, said the violence in Lahore began on Tuesday when officers went to comply with the court order and arrest Khan. But, he said, Khan’s supporters started throwing stones at officers, who were unarmed and only carrying batons.
“We will comply with the court order, and we will do it,” he told Geo TV station.
In Islamabad, Khan's legal team on Thursday asked judge Zafar Iqbal to suspend the arrest warrants he had issued last week for Khan, who is accused of illegally selling state gifts and concealing his assets.
Iqbal gave no indication of whether he will suspend the arrest warrants for Khan. Instead, he asked why Khan resisted when officers went to his house to arrest him. The judge said if Khan surrenders to the court now, he will stop police from arresting him.
Violence erupted in Lahore on Tuesday when about 1,000 supporters of Khan clashed with police when they tried to arrest the former premier at his house in the upscale area of Zaman Park. Khan's supporters hurled petrol bombs, rocks and bricks at police. Officers responded by swinging batons, firing tear gas and using water cannons. They failed to arrest Khan.
On Wednesday, Khan said in a video message that he was ready to travel to Islamabad on March 18 to appear before the court, if he is not arrested. Khan also posed for cameras seated at a long table, showing off piles of spent tear gas shells he said had been collected from around his home.
“What crime did I commit that my house has been attacked like this,” he tweeted the previous day.
Khan, who was ousted in a no-confidence vote in parliament in April, was ordered to appear before a judge in Islamabad on Saturday to answer charges of illegally selling state gifts he had received during his term as premier and concealing his assets.
HD Revanna and son Prajwal Revanna are facing a probe over allegations of sexual harassment by a woman who worked in their household
world1 day ago
Last month, Abu Sitta reported that he had been banned from Germany 'for the month of April', and accused the authorities there of stifling freedom of expression
world1 day ago
The prospect of a large-scale invasion of Rafah, where around 1.2 million civilians are sheltering, has sparked intensifying global alarm
world1 day ago
The ministry said later that Russian aircraft and air defence systems had downed a total of 15 ATACMS in the past week
world1 day ago
Dozens of students pitched tents on one of the main squares at the university
world1 day ago
The plane landed in Frankfurt at around 5.30pm, met by a waiting medical staff
world1 day ago
Nijjar, 45, was shot dead outside a Sikh temple on June 18 in Surrey, a Vancouver suburb
world2 days ago
Lawyer Deepak Bikram Mishra, who filed a petition urging the court to curtail climbing permits back in 2019, confirmed
world2 days ago