ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan’s bail on corruption charges was extended again on Monday (Jun 19), after he urged supporters to take to the streets if he is re-arrested.
Khan’s brief detention last month on graft charges sparked days of deadly violence as thousands of his followers rampaged through cities, setting fire to buildings and clashing with police.
He was freed from custody after the Supreme Court declared the arrest illegal, but he says the government still plans to detain him to quash his momentum ahead of elections due by October.
“They believe that people will sit as silent spectators when they put me in jail,” the 70-year-old said in a live-streamed address late on Sunday night.
“Death is much better than subjugation. Make up your minds against fear. You have to stand up, peaceful protest is your right,” he said.
On Monday, a special corruption court in Islamabad extended bail for Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi until Jul 4.
He was also bailed in 15 other cases before three courts, said Gohar Khan, a member of his legal team.
Since he was ousted by a no-confidence vote in parliament last year, Khan has waged an unprecedented campaign against Pakistan’s powerful military. Supporters viewed his May 9 arrest as payback for that defiance.
Following the former cricket star’s release, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has suffered a major crackdown including widespread arrests.
The government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif accuses Khan of orchestrating anti-state violence and has pledged to try some protesters in military courts.
“These cases are anti democratic,” Khan told a judge in an anti-terrorism court in Islamabad where he faced eight cases on Monday.
“I have never incited my supporters to violence,” he added. “Peaceful protest is a democratic right.”