Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) — Paramilitary forces detained former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad, on Tuesday, on charges brought by Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau, an anti-corruption agency.
Imran Khan was providing his biometric data to appear in court when paramilitary forces broke a window to gain access to him before arresting him, as seen in a video provided to CNN by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
In the video, paramilitary forces attack the High Court building in Islamabad before Imran Khan’s arrest.
A video sent to CNN by Tahreek shows a group of paramilitaries piled into cars and wielding batons before making an arrest.
Tehreek-e-Insaf spokesman Fouad Chaudhry said the political leader was “taken by unknown persons to an unknown location”.
Khan was ousted in a parliamentary vote of no confidence last year and has since led a popular campaign against the current government, accusing it of colluding with the army to remove him from office.
He faced an increasing number of legal cases against him, and several arrest warrants were issued against him, which sparked confrontations with his supporters.
Imran Khan faces allegations of illegally selling gifts given to him by foreign dignitaries while in office, which he dismisses as “biased”, and says the charges against him are political.
And last March, the streets outside his residence in Lahore became a pitched battle between police and his supporters, after officers tried to arrest Khan for failing to appear in court on corruption charges.
His supporters threw stones and projectiles at the police, while people set fires inside Khan’s house, after officers fired tear gas at his residence.
Later, the police cut off the power supply to Khan’s house and turned off the street lights in the neighbourhood, and the operations were eventually called off.
The cricket legend-turned-politician accused the Pakistani authorities of trying to arrest him to keep him out of the arena before the general elections scheduled for next October.
“The government is terrified that if I take power, I will hold them accountable,” Khan told CNN during the unrest outside his residence in March.
“And they also know that, even if you go to jail, we will win the election no matter what they do,” he added.
“Reader. Infuriatingly humble travel enthusiast. Extreme food scholar. Writer. Communicator.”
More Stories
Conditions for obtaining a financing of 5,000 riyals from the advance electronic platform
Thousands of Muslim minorities defy the Chinese authorities to refuse to demolish the dome and minarets of a mosque
An agreement between Sisi and Erdogan to start immediately raising the level of relations between Egypt and Turkey