Imran open to Zaman Park search ‘according to LHC orders’

LAHORE:

The Punjab interim government on Friday said it had failed to reach an agreement with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on carrying out a search operation at his Zaman Park residence in Lahore.

The provincial government claims the presence of several terrorists in Zaman Park who set alight government buildings and carried out violent attacks on military installations following the PTI chief’s arrest on corruption charges last week.

But, speaking to reporters later in the evening, the PTI chairman said that he does not trust the Punjab caretaker government, fearing that they would plant weapons and falsified evidence to implicate him in a fake case.

Imran acknowledged that he met a team of police and provincial government officials who visited his residence this evening.

“I told them to come see that there is no wanted person here. But then they said that we want to carry out en entire search of your house. If you want to find wanted men or terrorists, why do you have to come search my house? Have I committed a crime, or is there another reason that needs to be specified?” said the PTI chief.

“I told them that I won’t allow that. If there is anything that we permit, it will be along the lines of what the Lahore High Court ordered.” He said the LHC had permitted that “there would be one person from their side, one from ours, along with a female officer”.

“This is what the LHC ordered, so that what happened last time is not repeated. [Last time] they claimed that they found weapons, damaged and stole things, then also claimed Klashnikovs [were found]. That is why we do not trust them at all.”

The PTI chairman said that the government is welcome to carry out a search of his residence if it ensures it will be done according to the orders of the Lahore High Court.

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Earlier today, Lahore police obtained warrants for a thorough operation in both the inner and outer parts of the former prime minister’s house as part of a “terrorist hunt”.

But, despite the search warrant, the government and police have so far been unable to carry out the operation.

A team of government and police officials, led by the Lahore Commissioner Muhammad Ali Randhawa, entered Zaman Park this evening and presented the search warrants to Imran Khan’s lawyers. The government team included Lahore DCO Rafia Haider, DIG Police Operations Sadiq Ali Dogar, and SSP Sohaib Ashraf.

But, speaking to private news channel, Punjab Information Minister Amir Mir said the negotiations ended in a stalemate, with the government team unable to reach an agreement with Imran Khan on how to proceed with the search of his residence.

“The meeting lasted for about 1.5 hours, and we provided the names and evidence of those involved in the attacks on May 9. But an agreement could not be reached. We have hit a deadlock,” Mir said.

The provincial minister said that, in an attempt to keep the peace, the government team provided the PTI chief with a list of 2,200 terrorists wanted for the attack, some of whom are believed to be hiding in the Zaman Park area.

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But Mir said the PTI chief voiced his discomfort at the prospect of such a large police force conducting the operation in his residence and its surroundings, saying he would allow only four police officers to search his house.

“We have provided a list of 2,200 people wanted for the attack. We have learnt through geo-fencing that some of these people are hiding in Zaman Park. But Khan sb insisted that he cannot allow so many police personnel to carry out the operation,” he said.

Mir claimed that, during the meeting, Imran Khan insisted that the suspects being named by the government “are not here, maybe they are under ground”.

Mir said that suspects already arrested by police have given information that some terrorists are hiding in the Zaman Park area, which was further corroborated by geo-fencing data.

“Ten of the miscreants who attacked the Corps Commanders’ house in Lahore, they were located in Zaman Park area through geo-fencing,” he claimed.

Mir added that some of the suspects include members of Imran Khan’s family, including Hasaan Niazi and Zubair Niazi. The minister also named PTI leaders Murad Saeed, Azam Swati, and Hammad Azhar as suspects in the search.

‘Terrorists’ fleeing Zaman Park arrested

Earlier in the day, the Lahore police claimed the arrest of six more “terrorists” who were attempting to flee from the residence of PTI chief Imran Khan in the provincial capital.

The police added that out of the six “terrorists”, four were involved in the attack on Askari Tower in Gulberg, while two were involved in the Corps Commander House attack.

According to reports, police have closed all the roads leading to Zaman Park, with the area presenting a deserted look.

The PTI chief appeared before an anti-terrorism court (ATC) earlier today and during an informal conversation with journalists said that he “has not witnessed a crackdown like this in 35 years”, adding that he will “fight till the end”.

“It seems as if all civil liberties and all fundamental rights are finished. Only the judiciary is protecting human rights now,” he said.

The PTI chief furthered that, “I was a captain who fought till the last ball, I will fight till the last ball.”

The government had announced that a delegation, headed by Commissioner Lahore, would visit Zaman Park on Friday afternoon (today) for talks with Imran’s representatives regarding the search of his residence for the suspects wanted for May 9 violence in the city.

If agreed, 400 police personnel are likely to be part of the search of the former prime minister’s house.

A day earlier, the Lahore Police claimed they had captured eight “terrorists” attempting to flee Zaman Park.

Caretaker Punjab Information Minister Aamir Mir revealed in an earlier statement that all the captured individuals were involved in the attack on the Corps Commander House in Lahore on May 9.

Following the development, Imran reiterated that the violence on May 9 was pre-planned to justify crackdown on his party, as police continued the roadblocks around his residence at Zaman Park.

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In a series of tweets, the PTI chief also alleged that the caretaker Punjab government was planning to bring 30-40 people to his residence and accuse him of harbouring terrorists.

Heavy contingents of police and Anti-Riot Force (ARF) closed the roads to Zaman Park at Mall Road, Dharampura, Canal Road and Garhi Shahu, asking Imran to surrender 40 people suspected of attacking the Jinnah House earlier this week.

The government gave the PTI chief a 24-hour deadline to surrender the “suspected miscreants”, warning that otherwise an operation would be launched. The deadline expired a day earlier.