Ex-NA speaker's brother confirms arrest; sources say PTI stalwart shifted to unknown location
In another setback to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), top leader Asad Qaiser has been arrested from his residence in Bani Gala, Islamabad, the former National Assembly speaker's brother confirmed on Friday.
Qaiser's brother said in a video statement that men dressed in plain clothes took the PTI stalwart.
Sources said that Qaiser was taken into custody by police and Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) personnel for alleged corrupt practices related to purchase of medical equipment for Gajju Khan Medical College in Swabi.
He was shifted to an unknown location after the arrest, they added.
The setback for the Imran Khan-led party, which is already embroiled in legal battles as its top leadership remains behind bars in different cases, came just a week after Qaiser led a PTI delegation in a meeting with Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl's (JUI-F) Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
"Today, we came to offer our condolences [over the demise of Fazl's mother-in-law], this is our culture. We did not discuss politics in the meeting," said Qaiser while speaking to the media after the meeting, which he said had taken place after approval from Khan.
Meanwhile, the PTI chief and vice-chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi are also incarcerated at the Adiala jail and undergoing trial in the cipher case.
Imran was initially arrested in a graft case on May 9, triggering strong protests from the party across the country in which state installations were targetted.
During the riots important military installations, including the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and Lahore Corp Commander’s residence, were ransacked.
This led to a crackdown against those involved in the events and hundreds of party workers and leaders were arrested.
