Please do ensure that constitutional rights of Imran Khan are not violated & his life is fully secured, President Alvi writes to PM Shehbaz

ISLAMABAD, May 11 (SABAH): In a letter to Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, President Dr. Arif Alvi on Thursday deplored the manner in which Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was arrested inside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) premises.

“I would like to draw your attention to the way Imran Khan was arrested,” the president wrote in the letter two days after the PTI chief was arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case, which led to widespread deadly protests.

“The people of Pakistan and I were shocked to see the video of this incident. The video shows the abuse of a former prime minister. Imran Khan is a popular leader and the head of a major political party.”

He further added that law enforcement personnel had forcibly entered the Islamabad High Court, while the biometric process of Imran Khan was going on.

President Alvi wrote “The clumsy hubris in which his arrest was carried out has tarnished the image of Pakistan in the international community, and the enemies of Pakistan are given an opportunity to mock and portray Pakistan as a country having litter respect for rights of citizens. This kind of incident should not happen with anyone, and the justification that such episodes have happened before doe not make them ‘right’ today. The already tottering economy is badly affected and polarization in society is further exacerbated due to such ill-conceived and unwarranted incidents as above. Of course, he has a large number of followers who were emotionally charged after such scenes of his arrest and dragging of their leader by the security officials despite his injured leg due to an assassination attempt on him. The painful event led to attacks by mobs on public assets including buildings of the Armed Forces. I believe that the people have a right to protest but they should remain peaceful and with the bounds of the law”.  

President Alvi further wrote “All are shocked because of the heart-wrenching, unfortunate and regrettable loss of lives which are highly condemnable. Besides the above, the rapidly polarizing body politic must be stabilized by reducing political temperature rather than the tit for tat, kneejerk reactions including the wave of arrests subsequently, that is continuously making the situation worst. I am distressed over the damages to public assets and unlawful actions of miscreants. As the upholder of the Constitution and Law, I condemn such incidents. My country is passing through a difficult phase, let’s take a deep breach and salvage our destiny”.

President Alvi wrote “Please do ensure that constitutional rights of Mr. Imran Khan are not violated and his life is fully secured”.

President Alvi also wrote “The Prime Minister is obliged under the Constitution and Rules of Business, 1973 to keep me informed about the current state of affairs in the country”.

Earlier, President Alvi on Twitter also condemned the “heart-wrenching and regrettable” situation the country has descended into.

The president said: “The way some miscreants have damaged public property, particularly government and military buildings, is condemnable.”

President Alvi tweeted: “I am alarmed, shocked & deeply disturbed over the current situation in the country arising out of the arrest & manhandling of the former PM Imran Khan. The loss of human lives as an aftermath is heart-wrenching, regrettable, unfortunate & highly condemnable.”

He further added that while the right to protest is a constitutional right of any person, it should remain “within the bounds of the law”.

“Protest is a constitutional right of every citizen of Pakistan but should always remain within the bounds of the law.

“The way some miscreants have damaged public property, particularly government and military buildings, is condemnable.”

President Alvi ended his statement by urging stakeholders to look for political solutions and appealing to citizens to remain peaceful.

“We must have a re-Think & look for political solutions, rather than coercion & arrests. I have conveyed my concerns to the political & military leadership & am hopeful that the situation can improve. I strongly appeal to all citizens of the country to remain peaceful,” the tweet concluded.