A petition was filed in the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) Rawalpindi bench on Monday, challenging the arrest of Awami Muslim League (AML) Chief, PTI ally and former interior minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed, his nephew Sheikh Shakir and servants, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Making the federation of Pakistan, the government of Punjab, IG Punjab, RPO, CPO, SP operations, SHOs of Civil Lines, Westridge, Waris Khan and New Town police stations of Rawalpindi respondents, Sheikh Aamer Shafiq, Rasheed’s nephew, in his petition, argued that police personnel whisked away the veteran politician and others without any arrest warrants and shifted them to an undisclosed location where they had been kept in illegal confinemen.

He further said that despite repeated contacts with the police, the latter were not providing information about the detainees. “An interesting thing is that those picked up by the police neither had any case registered against them nor were they wanted in connection with any investigation,” read the petition.

It was further stated that Shakir had nothing to do with politics. “He is a trader. But still he was picked up,” read the petition.

Furthermore, the petitioner said that this act by the police was a violation of articles 4, 9, 10, 15 and 14-A of the constitution.

It was prayed to the court to order the police to produce detainees in the court and set them free.

Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed was arrested by Islamabad police on Sunday evening.

According to his lawyer Sardar Raziq Khan, “Men clad in plain clothes arrested Rashid from his residence, claiming that the former interior minister had been moved to an “undisclosed location”.

Sardar Raziq Khan said Rashid’s nephew Sheikh Shakir and servant Sheikh Imran had also been arrested from his house located at Bahria Town Phase –III, Rawalpindi. 

He said it was not known in which case Sheikh Rasheed had been arrested. However, he asserted that they will take the legal route. 

Taking to the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, Sheikh Rashid's nephew Sheikh Rashid Shafiq denounced the arrest.  

Reporter: Irshad Qureshi