New Delhi: Leading Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan escaped from his residence in Lahore on Sunday hours after police put him under house arrest following the imposition of emergency rule by President Pervez Musharraf.
However, the website of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Khan’s party, says that there is more than meets the eye in the disappearance of the former cricketer.
The website says, “Contrary to reports in electronic media, the Chief Political Secretary of PTI Saifullah Niazi has said that Imran Khan has been arrested by the government authorities and his whereabouts are unknown.”
“Chairman Imran Khan was told by the police last night that he is under house arrest. But around 3 am the police brought warrants to take him to prison and at that time it was discovered that he had mysteriously vanished while there were over two dozen policemen surrounding his house. We are not sure where they have taken him as there is no way he could have gone out without the knowledge of the police and he could be in a lot of danger,” the website quoted Niazi as saying.
Khan's political party has little support in Pakistan, but he is a high profile and respected opposition figure.
"He (Khan) was detained along with eight supporters at the house. The supporters are at home but he has slipped away," a close relative was quoted by Reuters as saying on Sunday.
Khan, speaking after his house arrest, had told CNN that Musharraf was squarely to blame for Pakistan's problems and said Emergency rule would not help.
"He never said how is he through the Emergency going to do things that are any different. He was the absolute ruler, he had absolute control so what was the impediment in his way to fight militancy and terrorism,” Khan had said.
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