Former Pakistan Prime Minister, Imran Khan, Appears In Court As Police Arrest Hundreds Over Violent Protests

Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan has appeared in court, a day after his arrest on corruption charges sparked nationwide protests.

According to the police, nearly 1,000 people have been arrested since Mr Khan was arrested on corruption charges. Although, the former leader has denied the allegations against him.

There is tight security at the police guesthouse where he is being detained, which is serving as a courtroom, BBC News reports.

Khan will be disqualified from standing for election if he is convicted.

At least two people were killed during violent protests that broke out in several cities across Pakistan following his arrest on Tuesday.

Pakistan’s paramilitary forces arrested the former Prime Minister in the capital Islamabad, in a move that threatens to escalate political tensions at a time of economic distress in the country.

Khan was arrested during a court appearance in Islamabad over corruption allegations, after months of a political crisis.

Musarrat Jamshed Cheema, a leader of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, confirmed Khan’s arrest on Tuesday to Al Jazeera.

“He went for his biometrics procedure from where he was picked by the Rangers,” she said, referring to the paramilitary force.

Akbar Nasir Khan, a top police official in Islamabad, told Al Jazeera that Khan was arrested in a case related to Al-Qadir Trust. The anti-corruption National Accountability Bureau had issued an arrest warrant against Khan on May 1 in relation to the case, he said.

Since his removal from power last year, Khan has been slapped with dozens of charges, all of which he denies and says are politically motivated.

Imran Khan’s lawyer accused the Rangers of hitting Khan on his head and kicking him before taking him away.

The 70-year-old cricketer-turned-politician was removed from power in April 2022, less than four years into his term as prime minister after he lost a confidence vote in parliament. Since then, he has been campaigning for early national polls, due in October this year.

In November, he was shot in the leg while campaigning in the city of Wazirabad.

He has accused a senior intelligence official of carrying out the attack. But the military has denied the accusation.

A day before his arrest, the military had warned Mr Khan against repeating the allegation.