“The rule of law and freedom of expression have been completely abolished in Pakistan,” criticizes the Pakistani PTI. The power struggle between the government and the opposition had previously escalated.
Former foreign minister and vice-president of the opposition PTI party, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, has been arrested in Pakistan. The party announced this on Saturday on the online platform X, which was previously called Twitter. Qureshi was taken into custody under a high police presence after a press conference at his residence in the capital Islamabad. “The rule of law and freedom of expression have been completely abolished in Pakistan,” criticized the PTI.
Acting Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti said in a statement to journalists that the arrest was in connection with a wire report. A wire report represents encrypted telegrams to convey confidential diplomatic messages. The statement also said that there were official investigations into PTI chief and former Prime Minister Imran Khan and some of his party colleagues after information from the report was illegally shared.
As a spokesman for the PTI confirmed to the German Press Agency, the PTI politician and former planning minister Asad Umar was also arrested on Sunday.
Three years imprisonment for the opposition leader
A power struggle has been raging in Pakistan for months between the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and opposition leader Khan. The former cricket star was jailed and sentenced to three years in a corruption trial earlier in August. Observers suspect political reasons.
On Friday, the electoral commission in the country announced that the parliamentary elections planned for autumn would be postponed. Informed circles in Islamabad even expect a delay until spring 2024. The PTI then announced that it would take legal action against the delay.
Source: Stern
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