ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Tuesday he was not in favor of arresting anyone for political reasons, adding that former prime minister Imran Khan faced the danger of being detained due to his own “ego” which prevented him from making court appearances and facing charges against him.
The minister issued the statement during an interview with The Daily Show, a popular TV program in the United States, as police clashed with the supporters of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party in the eastern Lahore city while making an effort to arrest the former premier.
The development took place after a court in Islamabad issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for Khan in a case involving the sale of state gifts during his tenure as prime minister following his continuous absence from the legal proceedings against him.
“I would never want any politician in my country or any country to go to jail for political reasons,” the foreign minister said during the interview. “In Mr. Khan’s case, he’s under the threat of arrest because of his ego. The courts are saying that he has to come to court and fight his cases, whatever cases are against him. And he says, I’m Imran Khan, and I’m too important, and I’m not going to turn up to court.”
He said Khan and his political party had made “a complete mockery of the judicial system in Pakistan.”
“Had he gone to court, there’s probably no reason he had to fear imminent arrest,” he continued. “Because he’s violated court orders time and time again, finally, the courts have instructed the police to produce him before court.”
Asked what the ongoing political crisis in the country said about the nature of democracy in Pakistan, Bhutto-Zardari said it had always been fragile.
However, he maintained Pakistan was in “democratic transition,” adding that he hoped the country would move “toward a more democratic society” in the wake of the current political crisis.
The foreign minister said it was his idea to bring a no-trust move against the former prime minister in the national parliament to dislodge Khan’s administration. However, it took him about two years to convince other political actors about the viability of his strategy before Khan was driven out of power.
He also discussed the recent monsoon floods while describing climate change as a major problem for the country. He maintained such pressing challenges had been overshadowed by the political developments in Pakistan which had even made people forget about the survivors of floods who still needed their help.
