Govt censures Supreme Court for providing 'relief' to Imran

Federal Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb censured the Supreme Court on Thursday for providing "relief" to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief and former premier Imran Khan.

"The SC is giving relief to a criminal, a terrorist, a gangster who leads armed groups," said Marriyum Aurangzeb.

The remarks came as the minister addressed a press conference in Islamabad minutes after the apex court ordered Imran to be produced in court within an hour on Thursday, as it heard the PTI's plea challenging Imran's arrest in the Al-Qadir Trust case.

The former premier was arrested on May 9 by the paramilitary force from the Islamabad High Court (IHC), over allegations of having looted Rs50 billion from the national treasury, along with a property tycoon, and getting the Al-Qadir University Trust registered on 450-kanal of land.

Hours after Imran's arrest, the IHC declared that his arrest from the court's premises was carried out legally, while the PTI alleged political persecution.

A day later, an anti-graft court granted the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) eight-day physical remand of Imran Khan.

The government has backed the arrest as legal, dismissing allegations of foul play.

At the presser today, Marriyum told reporters that, "Imran Khan arrested by NAB for investigation in Al-Qadir Trust case." She lamented that "after the arrest, terrorists and armed groups attacked state and public property in the country".

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She maintained that the PTI leadership has "incited armed groups to violence", and at another point stressed that "the leader of these armed groups is the terrorist".

"Corps commander's house was burnt, patients were taken out of ambulances and ambulances were set ablaze, mosques were targetted by arsonists, metro stations were burnt," she lamented, "policemen were attacked, their vehicles set on fire."

"Had this terrorist been punished earlier, the country would not be burning today," she said.

"If courts support armed groups, encourage them, then similar relief should be given to all people," said Marriyum.

She also said that "contempt of court could have been avoided" had the courts upheld justice when political leaders including Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Rana Sanaullah, Salman Shehbaz, Hamza Shehbaz, Miftah Ismail and others were "dragged and thrown in jails".

"Real contempt of court happens when the country's courts become shelters for armed groups and terrorists," she added.

Speaking of previous failed attempts at arresting the PTI chief, the minister said that "had the court respected its arrest warrants, nobody would have disrespected the courts today as they have."

"If you had respected yourself at that time, this country would not be burning today," she said.