Lahore: Punjab Police Friday obtained warrants to conduct a detailed search at former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan’s Zaman Park residence here to find “terrorists” reportedly hiding there, media reports said.
The move comes after the Punjab government decided to send a team to hold talks with Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leadership, according to Geo TV.
An officer of the rank of a superintendent of police will lead the contingent, which will also include a female police officer, the report said.
The Commissioner of Lahore Division will also be accompanying the team. According to the statement, the search will encompass a thorough examination of both the entrance and exit points of the residence, with the primary objective of finding “terrorists” hiding at the place, the Dawn newspaper reported.
Wednesday, the Punjab government claimed that “30 to 40 terrorists were hiding inside Khan’s residence,” and gave an ultimatum of 24 hours to his party to hand over the miscreants.
However, no action was taken after the deadline expired Thursday.
Punjab Information Minister Amir Mir said law enforcers will conduct a search operation at Khan’s residence after his permission and in front of cameras to apprehend “terrorists”, the Geo TV report said.
“We [the interim government] have decided that instead of a head-on collision, we will send a delegation to Khan sahab under the supervision of the Lahore commissioner,” Mir was quoted as saying in the report.
“They will ask him [Khan] to allow them to conduct a search operation. A police party — comprising 400 personnel — will accompany the delegation as there is a reported presence of terrorists,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Bilal Saddique Kamyana claimed to have arrested six more “terrorists” attempting to flee from Khan’s Zaman Park residence.
Friday, an anti-terrorism court here approved pre-arrest bail till June 2 to Khan in three terrorism cases filed against Pakistan’s former prime minister in the wake of violence that erupted after his arrest May 9.
In a video-link address from his Zaman Park residence here Wednesday, Khan, 70, said Pakistan is heading towards an imminent disaster and it may face disintegration.
Khan May 9 by the paramilitary Pakistan Rangers at the Islamabad High Court premises triggered unrest in Pakistan.
For the first time in Pakistan’s history, the protesters stormed the army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and also torched a corps commander’s house in Lahore.
Police put the death toll in violent clashes to 10, while Khan’s party claims 40 of its workers lost their lives in the firing by security personnel.
Monday, the top military brass vowed to bring the arsonists, who attacked the civil and military installations, to justice through trial under relevant laws of the country, including the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.
Law enforcement agencies have arrested over 7,000 PTI workers across Pakistan, 4,000 of them from Punjab.
Meanwhile, Lahore police claim to have arrested 14 “terrorists” who were trying to flee from Khan’s Zaman Park residence.
“Police have arrested 14 terrorists Thursday and Friday who were wanted in the attack on Jinnah House and Askari Tower,” Punjab caretaker information minister Mir said Friday.
Khan, the cricketer-turned-politician, was ousted from power in April last year after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.
PTI