Soon after his arrest, Khan’s supporters took to the streets in large numbers, chanting slogans against the Pakistan Democratic Movement coalition government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the powerful military. Violent clashes between civilians and police in Pakistan continued for the second day. Local media say that many people have been killed.
Authorities have declared a state of emergency in some parts of the country to quell the unrest.
The situation in the country was still tense as Khan was brought to the accountability court on Wednesday. The court of Pakistan’s capital Islamabad sent him to eight-day custody.
“Imran Khan was arrested without any prior warrant or notice,” Asad Umar, a senior official of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, told DW on Tuesday. “We are opposing the arrest, which is our constitutional right,” he said. He said PTI workers were not involved in violent protests.
“We will file an appeal in the Supreme Court against Khan’s arrest,” he said. On Wednesday, Umar himself was detained by the authorities in Islamabad.