Amid Assassination Threats, Imran Khan Walks Into Court Wearing Bulletproof Helmet - Watch

New Delhi: Amid assasination threats, former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday arrived at a Lahore court wearing a makeshift bulletproof helmet that looked like a black hood. A video posted by his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party also showed the cricketer-turned-politician arriving at the court being guarded by four men with bulletproof shields. 

Imran Khan, who was shot in the leg last year, has constantly claimed that he faces threats to his life.

عمران خان سخت سیکیورٹی میں انسداد دہشتگردی عدالت پیش ہوئے۔ pic.twitter.com/ZKetvQBQUe — PTI (@PTIofficial) April 4, 2023

Khan was granted interim bail by the anti-terrorism court in Pakistan's Punjab province until April 13 in three cases filed relating to the clashes that took place between his supporters and the police outside the residence of the former prime minister in Lahore last month.

In the last hearing, presiding judge Ijaz Ahmad Buttar had directed the PTI chief to ensure his appearance at each subsequent hearing and also join the police investigation into the cases.

The police registered the cases against Khan and other PTI leaders for allegedly attacking the police teams and burning official property and vehicles outside his Zaman Park residence in Lahore.

Besides Section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, offences under various sections of the Pakistan Penal Code have been included in the FIRs.

During the hearing, the leader of the joint investigation team (JIT) investigating the alleged assassination threats against the PTI chief arrived in court and said the party leader had not become a part of the investigation.

The caretaker government of Punjab had on March 22 decided to form a committee led by SSP Imran Kishwar to conduct an inquiry into claims of the ex-prime minister that a conspiracy has been hatched to assassinate him.

The announcement regarding the inquiry commission was made by interim Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi to conduct and finalise the probe into FIRs registered in Lahore.

The court then directed Khan's counsel to submit a written statement and summoned the head of the JIT to appear in the next hearing.

The judge also directed the JIT to complete the probe at the earliest. The PTI chief was injured on November 3 last year when shots were fired by a gunman at Khan's container-mounted truck in an assassination attempt during an election rally speech in Wazirabad, Punjab.

However, Khan's counsel told the court that his client had become a part of the ongoing investigation.

Khan had also approached the Lahore High Court on March 25 for the provision of security that he, as an ex-premier, was entitled to.

In a petition filed through Advocate Azhar Siddique, the PTI chief had said sufficient security had not been deployed at his Zaman Park residence.

He had claimed that due to security lapses because of the inefficiency of police authorities, he had to make private security arrangements to safeguard his life, even though it was the constitutional obligation of the government.

The plea had argued that the respondents, despite a court order, had deprived the petitioner and his party of security due to political grudges. Therefore, the lives of the petitioner and his party members are in danger.

The petition asked the court to order the respondents to immediately provide foolproof security to the petitioner and beef it up with all allied facilities, round the clock, so that his life may be safeguarded, as the same has been guaranteed through Article 9 of the Constitution.

The clashes that erupted outside Khan's Zaman Park residence were the result of a police operation to enforce an arrest warrant issued by an Islamabad court in the Toshakhana case.

Khan has been in the crosshairs for buying gifts, including an expensive Graff wristwatch he had received as the premier at a discounted price from the state depository called Toshakhana and selling them for profit.

Khan had repeatedly failed to attend case hearings, leading to the warrant being issued against him.

(With agency inputs)