PTI ally was arrested from phase 3 of a private housing society in Rawalpindi
Awami Muslim League (AML) leader and PTI ally Sheikh Rashid was arrested from his residence in Rawalpindi on Sunday evening, his lawyer Sardar Abdul Razzak Khan confirmed.
“Men clad in plain clothes arrested Sheikh Rashid from his residence,” he said, claiming that the former interior minister had been moved to an “undisclosed location”.
Khan said Rashid’s nephew Sheikh Shakir and houseworker Imran have also been arrested.
In a post on social media platform X, the PTI condemned Rashid’s arrest. “The political victimisation and fascism continues, this time with the arrest of Sheikh Rashid,” it said
The political victimisation and fascism continues, this time with the arrest of Sheikh Rashid.
This is yet another episode of mockery of law in Pakistan. Despite a caretaker government in place the fascism, and blatant violation of human rights continues! pic.twitter.com/ZG7TF8sD0c
— PTI (@PTIofficial) September 17, 2023
Rashid’s arrest comes amid the state’s crackdown on the PTI and its supporters following incidents of vandalism on May 9 — when party chairman Imran Khan was first arrested from the premises of the Islamabad High Court.
Earlier this year in June, the AML leader had alleged that the Islamabad police broke into his house and beat up his servants. He had also claimed that in a second incident, a “force clad in plain clothes” tortured his employees at his Lal Haveli residence in Rawalpindi.
According to sources, the Islamabad Police arrested Rashid, who is a close ally of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), along with his two nephews. He was arrested from phase 3 of a private housing society.
Meanwhile, Sardar Abdul Razzak Khan, the attorney representing Sheikh Rashid, has officially confirmed the arrest. Razzak stated that officers from the Islamabad Police, along with several individuals in plainclothes, arrived at the scene and apprehended the senior politician.
He also disclosed that Rashid and his two nephews have been relocated to an undisclosed location.
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