Khan was arrested during a court appearance in Islamabad over corruption allegations, after months of a political crisis.
Pakistan's paramilitary forces have arrested former Prime Minister, Imran Khan, in the capital Islamabad, in a move that threatens to escalate political tensions at a time of economic distress in the country.
Khan was arrested during a court appearance in Islamabad over corruption allegations, after months of a political crisis.
Musarrat Jamshed Cheema, a leader of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, confirmed Khan’s arrest on Tuesday to Al Jazeera.
“He went for his biometrics procedure from where he was picked by the Rangers,” she said, referring to the paramilitary force.
Akbar Nasir Khan, a top police official in Islamabad, told Al Jazeera that Khan was arrested in a case related to Al-Qadir Trust. The anti-corruption National Accountability Bureau had issued an arrest warrant against Khan on May 1 in relation to the case, he said.
Since his removal from power last year, Khan has been slapped with dozens of charges, all of which he denies and says are politically motivated.
Imran Khan’s lawyer accused the Rangers of hitting Khan on his head and kicking him before taking him away.
“Rangers forcibly entered and broke the door and window [of the room]. They picked up Imran Khan from his wheelchair, hit him on his head and kicked him,” Gohar Ali Khan, who was accompanying the former prime minister at the Islamabad High Court, said in a video posted on the PTI’s social media account.
“I fell during the commotion. Rangers pepper sprayed him and took him away,” the lawyer added.
Ali Khan said no police officials were present inside the room where Khan was arrested from.
Fawad Chaudhry, a PTI leader, tweeted that the Islamabad High Court complex was “occupied” by the Rangers and lawyers were “being subjected to torture”.
Video footage on local media showed Khan being escorted to a Rangers vehicle and taken to an unknown location.
PTI officials called on supporters to take to the streets following Khan’s arrest, which they termed an abduction.
“Pakistan’s brave people must come out and defend their country,” the party posted on Twitter.
Police in Islamabad, however, warned that an order banning gatherings of more than four people would be strictly enforced.
Reports said Aamer Farooq, the chief justice of the Islamabad High Court, has ordered government officials to appear before the court over Khan’s arrest.
The 70-year-old cricketer-turned-politician was removed from power in April 2022 after he lost a confidence vote in parliament. Since then, he has been campaigning for early national polls, due in October this year.
Meanwhile, following Khan's detention, roads clogged with panicking commuters who rushed to pick up children from school and leave work, fearing protesters would block roads. Islamabad's police issued an order banning demonstrations - in the past, Khan's supporters have ignored those orders and protested regardless. Authorities also appeared to shut down internet services in some areas of Islamabad.
In the Pakistani city of Lahore, which has become Khan's seat of power, his party, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf, posted an image on Twitter of an alarm siren and urged supporters to reach a popular crossing to demonstrate. The words, "Reach Liberty Chowk Right Now," were emblazoned across the image.
"Pakistan's biggest political leader was arrested," said one of Khan's closest allies, Asad Umar, in an Urdu-language Tweet. "The world can see there is no law and order in Pakistan anymore." Umar said Khan's party had formed a six-member committee to decide on further actions.
It was not immediately clear why Khan was detained, given that he had been attending court hearings for cases he was embroiled in, to request bail.
Khan had dodged previous arrest attempts from his residence in Lahore with his supporters clashing with police, ultimately pushing them back.
Local media outlet Geo reported Khan was arrested in relation to a case filed in Pakistan's anti-corruption court, which some analysts say is used to hound critics of the military.