Police halt operation when cricket came to Imran Khan’s rescue
It is Pakistan where everything is possible. The police here gladly withdrew from the cricketer-turned-politician’s house and returned without arresting Imran Khan. The reason being, there was a cricket match to be played as scheduled, and the police didn’t like to disturb the event.
Long back three decades ago on the 25th of March 1992, the then skipper of Imran Khan of Team Pakistan celebrated after bowling Richard Illingworth of England out to win the World Cup Final. This glory of Pakistan belonged at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia.
In the eastern city of Lahore there was an intense two-day police operation which was to arrest former Pakistan PM Imran Khan. Out of a sudden cricket came to the rescue of the former cricket star.
Imran Khan’s residence was surrounded by the police in the provincial capital of Punjab since Monday and there was a clear order to arrest him. He had failed to turn up to court on corruption charges, and then the indignant court ordered to detain him. But then the police retreated on Wednesday afternoon after another court order to suspend the operation for the day until the next day.
The cricketer’s popularity was based on his illustrious cricket career prior to stepping into politics. and the image changed to a super star following his successful captaincy leading Pakistan in 1992 to its only International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s World Cup title .
As per the statement by a senior police official lately that forces had to be deployed outside Imran Khan’s house and they withdrew in order to allow a Pakistan Super League (PSL) match that was to be played as scheduled.
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“Since the teams were about to reach the stadium a few hours prior to the match and the routes to the stadioum need to be cleared out, this is why the security personnel at Zaman Park had to step back for time being,” explained one of the the police officers.
