Calay News
This Friday, the Islamabad High Court granted former Prime Minister Imran Khan a 15-day bail period. Khan was detained during his arraignment on Tuesday at the request of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on suspicion of corruption and embezzlement.
The former prime minister applied for bail a day after Pakistan’s Supreme Court declared his arrest by the Rangers, a paramilitary unit with police functions, illegal. Khan’s arrest sparked massive protests across the country and violent clashes between law enforcement and protesters.
At the time of Khan’s arrest, representatives of the National Accountability Office had warrants for his arrest issued on May 1st. However, one of Khan’s lawyers, Khawaja Haris, stressed that they learned about the investigation launched by the agency through the press. He further noted that arrest warrants can only be issued if the preliminary proceedings turn into a formal investigation.
“The reason mentioned in the arrest warrants indicated that Khan failed to appear before the NAB despite repeated summons. However, as soon as the investigation was initiated, an attempt was made to arrest him,” Haris commented, stressing that the inquiries took the form of an investigation in April and that responses to two summonses had been filed.
Haris also pointed out the legal shortcomings present in the subpoenas and recalled the importance of indicating whether the person is subpoenaed as a witness or defendant.
