Bilawal says Sindh police forced to arrest ex-PM's son-in-law as army orders probe

KARACHI: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on Tuesday the inspector general (IG) of police in the Sindh province, Mushtaq Ahmed Mehar, had been abducted on Monday by paramilitary troops, who forced him to sign an order to arrest an opposition leader.
Opposition leader Muhammad Safdar, a member of the Pakistan Muslim League (PMLN) party, was arrested on Monday following a protest at the tomb of the country’s founder in Karachi, capital of the southern province of Sindh that the PPP rules. He is the son-in-law of Nawaz Sharif, three time prime minister of Pakistan and the head of the PMLN, which is part of a recently formed opposition alliance that is leading street protests against the central government. 
On Tuesday night, Pakistan’s army ordered a probe into the alleged abduction of the provincial police chief following an outcry over the incident.
“Who besieged the IG’s house at 2am,” the PPP chairman asked reporters at a press conference. “Who were the two people who entered his residence and where was he taken at 4am?”
Several top officials of Sindh police submitted leave applications to the provincial administration to protest the alleged abduction of their chief, saying they could not fulfill their duties in such a “stressful situation” and needed to take some time off to come out of the “state of shock.”
“The chief minister [Murad Ali Shah] has announced an investigation,” said the PPP chairman. “The officers are resigning and proceeding on leave one by one. This is matter of their dignity.”
Referring to Safdar’s arrest, he said: “It was shameful. No matter how much I condemn it, it will still be insufficient. I am ashamed. I am not able to show my face to anyone after what has happened in my province.”
“I demand of the [Director General Inter-Services Intelligence] General Faiz Hameed and [Chief of Army Staff] General Qamar Javed Bajwa to investigate their institutions to see how they are working in this province. Whoever has given you this advice, this is wrong and will damage the dignity of your institutions,” he added.
Safdar’s wife and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Vice President Maryam Sharif has said in a press talk that the Sindh police chief was picked up by Rangers, a paramilitary force, and “taken to the sector commander’s office” where he was forced to issue arrest orders for Safdar. 
“Taking notice of the Karachi incident, the COAS has directed Commander Karachi Corps to immediately inquire into the circumstances to determine the facts and report back as soon as possible,” the army’s media wing said in a statement on Tuesday night. 
It was later announced that the army chief also telephoned the PPP chairman to discuss the situation with him.  Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has also formed a ministerial committee to probe the matter.