PTI President Chaudhry Parvez Elahi has been re-arrested in Gujranwala, minutes after he was discharged by a court in two corruption cases, reported 24NewsHD TV channel Saturday.
Anti-Corruption Establishment spokesperson Abdul Wahid said the PTI leader was re-arrested in a case pertaining to illegal appointments in the Punjab Assembly.
A Gujranwala court discharged PTI President Parvez Elahi in two corruption cases, pertaining to the embezzlement of funds.
According to the details provided by ACE spokesperson, Elahi made 12 illegal recruitments in Punjab Assembly in grade 17.
The candidates were recruited in the provincial assembly by altering the records. "The recruitments were made by taking fake testing services for irregularities," said the spokesperson.
He said that the investigation by the ACE proved that fake recruitments were made in Punjab Assembly, adding that the anti-corruption has also arrested Secretary Rai Mumtaz Hussain in connection with this case on the basis of evidence.
"Rai Mumtaz was involved in fake recruiting process with Parvez Elahi," he said.
Earlier, the court reserved its verdict on whether to grant physical remand of PTI Central President and former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi in a corruption case.
Senior Civil Judge Musawwar Ashiq announced its ruling after hearing arguments from both sides.
Earlier, Pervaiz Elahi was produced in the court in connection with a corruption case. Anti-Corruption Establishment officers sought physical remand of Pervaiz Elahi, who was taken to the court of Senior Civil Judge Musawwar Ashiq.
Strict security arrangements have been put in place at sessions court in Gujranwala as Anti-Corruption Department produced Pervaiz Elahi in the court.
Sources in the department told 24News TV channel that the former chief minister was facing the charge of receiving Rs5 million in kickbacks in a four-kilometer-long road project.
Meanwhile, Pervaiz Elahi’s spokesman Chaudhry Iqbal and PTI leader Khawaja Waqar have been arrested by police from the premises of session court in Gujranwala. Their arrested triggerd protest against the police and the administration. Later, the authorities released both of them.
Pervaiz Elahi was rearrested on Friday in another graft case after being released by a Lahore court in Gujrat development projects corruption case.
A spokesman for Punjab’s Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) said the PTI president was arrested in a corruption case, registered by the ACE Gujranwala.
The spokesman said the ACE Punjab would file an appeal against the local court’s verdict, as many important points were ignored in the matter.
Earlier on Friday, a local court discharged Pervaiz Elahi in the Gujrat development projects corruption case and ordered for his release.
Judicial Magistrate Ghulam Murtaza Virk announced the verdict, which had been reserved after hearing detailed arguments of parties on the14-day physical remand plea, earlier in the day.
The ACE Punjab officials produced Pervaiz Elahi before the court and sought his 14-day physical remand for investigation.
The court was apprised that Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi misused his powers as the Punjab chief minister and caused loss to the exchequer.
No plan to quit PTI, says Pervaiz Elahi
PTI President Pervaiz Elahi has said that he won’t abandon the party “at any cost”.
Talking to the media outside the court in Gujranwala, Pervaiz Elahi claimed that he was kept inside a C-class jail last night and wasn’t given medicines.
Pervaiz Elahi told his lawyers in the courtroom that he was kept at a police station.
“They even did not give me my medicines,” he said and added “This all circus is a well-thought-out conspiracy but we are standing rock-solid against them.”
Reporter: Zahid Iqbal Rana