LAHORE (Web Desk) – Punjab interim communications minister Amir Mir said Thursday night that the government will send a “delegation” to PTI head Imran Khan’s home after Juma prayers to ask permission and authorization to inspect his home.
Speaking to a private television station, he said that Commissioner Lahore will lead the delegation of police personnel, and that the operation would take place in front of cameras. “At least 400 police personnel will accompany the commissioner because the number of terrorists was 40, not four,” he continued.
If Mr Khan refused, the government would consider its next course of action, he added. “Others were also hiding in the houses of Mr Khan’s relatives,” he said.
He went on to state that eight “terrorists” attempting to leave Mr Khan’s apartment were apprehended, and that officials tracked their whereabouts using geo-fencing. “Police were called off due to rain on Wednesday,” he said.
In terms of Mr Khan’s arrest, he said that the Punjab government had no intentions to do so, and that if police did not go to Zaman Park, another force would.
Police had earlier detained eight “suspects” who had sought sanctuary at Zaman Park, according to SP Civil Lines Hassan Bhati. “They were trying to flee Mr Khan’s residence,” he said.
He told the journalists that there were still persons hiding outside Mr Khan’s mansion in Zaman Park. “Police will investigate them and share more details later,” he said.
The previous position of the Punjab government
Previously, Amir Mir said that police were prepared to use weapons if assaulted. He told a press conference on Thursday that at least 3,400 people were detained in connection with the riots, and that further searches were planned. Mr Mir said on Wednesday night that the government had no intention of arresting PTI chairman Imran Khan till the 24-hour limit was reached.
He said that the provincial caretaker administration will divulge its intentions when the deadline expired. “The deadline will expire at 2pm tomorrow (Thursday),” he said.
Earlier, the caretaker Punjab government issued the PTI a 24-hour ultimatum to give up “30 to 40 terrorists” sheltering inside Imran Khan’s Zaman Park mansion in Lahore to police.
Aamir Mir, the interim Information Minister, issued the warning at a news conference in the province capital. The minister said that the PTI had been acting like a non-state actor since its leader had been attacking the military for more than a year.
He said that during the May 9 violent demonstrations, assaults on military sites and other locations were carried out as part of a plot, and that the government had taken a “zero tolerance policy” towards it.
Mr Mir told reporters that temporary Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi had given the Punjab police a “free hand” in dealing with “arsonists.”
According to the interim minister, anyone who assault military sites would be convicted in military tribunals. He said that no innocent people would be punished since all instances will be sent after confirmation. He said that the “PTI miscreants” breached the boundary on May 9. He said that over 3,400 assailants had been apprehended and 254 charges had been filed.