ISLAMABAD, May 18 (Reuters) – Pakistan’s powerful anti-corruption agency summoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday for questioning over the corruption charges that led to his arrest on May 9.
A spokesman for the National Accountability Bureau (NAB)which has in the past investigated, tried and jailed all those who have served as prime ministers since 2008, said Khan was expected to arrive at the agency’s headquarters in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad.
It was not clear if Khan, who denies the charges, would heed the summons. A spokesman for Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, was not immediately available for comment.
Khan’s arrest on May 9 by paramilitary troops triggered a wave of violence that deepened political instability in the South Asian nation of 220 million. Pakistan has also faced its worst moment economic crisiswith a long delay in obtaining critical financing from the IMF.
The Supreme Court ordered Khan’s bail last Friday, and another court on Wednesday extended his protective bond until May 31.
His wife Bushra Khan, commonly known as Bushra Bibi is also in bail until May 23.
On Wednesday, Khan said police had surrounded his home in Lahore, Punjab province, and he expected to be arrested again soon, after the government warned him to hand over supporters he blamed for the attacks on the army. .
Punjab Information Minister Amir Mir said the government had no plans to arrest Khan as the court had given him bail. “We all want him to hand over the terrorists who are hiding in his house,” he said.
Mir said intelligence agencies and law enforcement had identified as many as 40 people accused of attacking military installations as hiding in Khan’s home. He said Khan had 24 hours to hand over the suspects or face a “police operation”.
Khan has said authorities could search his home, but only with legal court orders, and has denied harboring anyone involved in the violence.
Additional reporting by Gibran Peshimam in Karachi and Mubasher Bukhari in Lahore; Written by Miral Fahmy; Edited by Raju Gopalakrishnan
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