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Imran Khan's party gets ultimatum on ‘30-40 terrorists’ present in his Lahore house
Thousands of Khan supporters had attacked and set on fire scores of government and public buildings, including the army's headquarters, following his arrest.
The interim provincial government in Pakistan's Punjab on Thursday gave a 24-hour ultimatum to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to hand over “30-40 terrorists who have taken refuge” in former Prime Minister Imran Khan's Zaman Park residence in Lahore, according to local media reports. Citing credible intelligence inputs, Punjab interim information minister Amir Mir reportedly claimed that “terrorists” who attacked Pakistan's Army installations were in contact with the PTI leadership at Zaman Park.
"We have intelligence that some 30 to 40 terrorists who were involved in attacking our army's buildings and installations are hiding at Zaman Park," said Mir, referring to the upscale Lahore neighbourhood where Khan lives.
"We're giving an ultimatum that these terrorists should be turned over to the police, or else there will be action," he told a press conference in the city.
Mir accused PTI of behaving like a non-state actor and alleged that its chief, Imran Khan, has been targeting the military for over a year.
For the first time in Pakistan's history, Imran Khan’s supporters stormed the Army headquarters in Rawalpindi and torched the historic Corps Commander's House in Lahore, formerly known as Jinnah House, in retaliation to his dramatic arrest.
"The PTI leadership had planned the attack before the arrest [of Imran Khan]," claimed Mir.
He said Khan had 24 hours to surrender the suspects, and that a police operation would be launched if he did not comply, reported Reuters.
The minister also claimed that the attack on Jinnah House could have been easily prevented but the police were barred from using weapons to avoid bloodshed in the province.
"Several arsonists were in touch with people inside Zaman Park during the attack on the Corps Commander House. They will be made an example so that no one will carry out such an act in the future," Geo News quoted Mir as saying.
(With inputs from agencies)
