Former Pakistan cricket captain and politician Imran Khan arrested in Pakistan

Charges on Imran Khan and his wife are of obtaining billions of rupees from a real estate firm for legalizing Rs50 billion.

The former Prime Minister and captain of the Pakistan cricket team, Imran Khan, has been taken into custody in Islamabad on Tuesday, May 9, 2023. He was expected to appear in court on Tuesday to request bail in a number of cases that called for his presence, but he has not yet been detained on the charge for which he was slated to do so.

Imran was reportedly taken into custody by the Pakistan Rangers, a paramilitary federal law enforcement unit in Pakistan, at around 2:15 p.m. local time. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was given custody of him so they could conduct more research. In Pakistan's capital, there is also a ban on big gatherings under Section 144, a colonial-era rule.

Details about the specific offence for which Imran was arrested remain unclear, but they relate to Al Qadir University, an institution he founded as prime minister in 2019 and where he remains chairman.

The charges concentrate on a quid pro quo deal for land that a powerful Pakistani businessman named Malik Riaz donated to the university. In December 2019, Riaz's assets worth £190 million were seized by the UK's National Crime Agency and sent back to Pakistan.

The arrest has been conducted by the National Accountability Bureau for causing losses to the national treasury

Islamabad police released a statement quoting Inspector General (IG) Akbar Nasir Khan as saying that Imran had been arrested in relation to the case which alleges that the PTI chief and his wife obtained billions of rupees from a real estate firm for legalizing Rs50 billion.

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said that Imran had failed to appear before the court despite being issued several notices.

“The arrest has been conducted by the National Accountability Bureau for causing losses to the national treasury,” he said to The Dawn, adding that Imran was not tortured.

This development follows the military's denial of Imran's claims against DG-C Maj Gen Faisal Naseer. Imran had charged the officer with taking part in the plot to kill him at Wazirabad. In a video address today, Imran reiterated the accusations.

The former premier was apprehended after numerous failed attempts to do so, including a police raid at his home in Lahore's Zaman Park, where he had managed to elude them.