Islamabad Police arrest PTI’s Elahi from Lahore as high court orders release

LAHORE  –  Pakistan Tehreek-e-In­saf (PTI) president and former Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi was re-ar­rested yet again from Lahore under 3 MPO (maintenance of public order) soon after the La­hore High Court ordered his release on Friday.

According to the sources, Elahi was dra­matically arrested by Islamabad Police from Zahoor Elahi Road. The move has triggered le­gal debate over the ju­risdiction of the feder­al police to apprehend a person from a prov­ince who had just been released on the order of a provincial court with directions that he should not be arrest­ed by any agency in any other case. The Islam­abad Police reported­ly shifted the two-time former chief minister Punjab to Islamabad via he­licopter, where he would be locked up in Adia­la Jail. The police through its official social media website account confirmed the arrest of Parvez Elahi under 3 MPO by Islamabad police and fur­ther informed that he was shifted to the prison without naming the location.

Earlier, the Lahore High Court had ordered the release of former Chief Minister Parvez Elahi re­straining law enforcement agencies from arrest­ing him in any other case. However, as soon as he left the LHC premises and reached Canal Road, the Islamabad Police officials boarded the vehicle and dragged him out of the vehicle. Senior lawyer Sardar Latif Khosa was also present in the same ve­hicle and was asked to step down before the for­mer chief minister was whisked away by the police. 

Reacting to the development, Moonis Elahi termed his father’s re-arrest as “abduction” and lamented that the court orders were ridiculed by the institutions. “Following high court’s orders and on the Judge’s instructions police including court security were taking my father home. As the car entered our street, it was stopped and he was abducted. If court orders are going to be rid­iculed like this maybe they should officially de­clare it”, he wrote on the social media website X, formerly twitter. 

Lawyers of the former chief minister gathered in the court of Justice Amjad Rafiq, and filed the peti­tion for contempt of court against the authorities and warrantless imprisonment.

Earlier, a hearing was held in the Lahore High Court on the petition against the NAB arrest of the former Punjab Chief Minister. After the hear­ing, the Lahore High Court ordered the release of PTI president Parvez Elahi directing the authori­ties not to arrest him in any other case. Parvez Ela­hi had challenged the NAB arrest in the LHC. 

Despite the release orders from the court Parvez Elahi did not leave the court out of fear of being arrested by the authorities in any undisclosed case. Justice Amjad Rafique re-heard the case of the former Chief Minister of Punjab in the Lahore High Court. Parvez Elahi’s lawyer Latif Khosa told the court that there were many officials in uni­form and plain clothes outside, the court order is very clear, so direct the police to drop Parvez Elahi home. After hearing the concern of the PTI president the LHC directed the registrar and po­lice p to escort Parvez Elahi to his residence under official security.

NAB officials reportedly clashed with the po­lice officials seeking re-arrest of Parvez Elahi. NAB and police officials engaged in physical altercation with each other over the re-arrest of former Pun­jab Chief Minister Parvez Elahi.