PTI’s Marwat arrested in Lahore

Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) Senior Vice President Sher Afzal Khan Marwat was arrested Thursday from outside the Lahore High Court (LHC), police sources and the party confirmed to Geo News.

The sources within the police said Marwat was arrested from the GPO Chowk under the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) Ordinance’s Section 3.

The sources said the PTI leader, after being detained, was shifted to an unknown location.

In response, the party said Marwat’s arrest shows that those in power were “worried”.

“This also shows lawlessness. The reason behind these unconstitutional, unlawful acts is that they want to run from elections,” PTI said in a statement, without exactly mentioning whom ‘they’ referred to.

“Sher Afzal Marwat should be released immediately,” the party said, reiterating that the arrests of its top leadership would not sway them from their path to “haqeeqi azadi (true freedom”.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who was recently elected to the party's top office, also condemned his senior party leader's arrest.

Marwat was briefly detained less than a week back in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Batkhela city, however, the police had denied detaining the PTI leader.

Sources, on the other hand, said that Marwat was on his way to Bajaur when the police stopped him at the checkpoint in Batkhela. However, a large number of PTI workers had gathered there and staged a protest.

This forced the law enforcement agency personnel to allow the PTI leader to proceed towards his destination. “He was not arrested anywhere in Malakand division,” DIG Muhammad Ali Khan had said.