LAHORE, Oct 17: Ali Imran Yousaf, the son-in-law of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, courted arrest on Wednesday in connection with what is known as the bakery torture case.
A police investigator told Dawn that following the CM’s orders, Mr Yousaf went to the Defence-B police station, where he was arrested. He said Mr Yousaf would be produced before court on Thursday.
He said police arrested Mr Yousaf after they added Section 109 of the PPC in the FIR in the light of supplementary statements of the accused and witnesses.
The official said the investigation officer recorded a statement of the suspect (Mr Yousaf) at the police station, adding he would be kept at the lock-up. The police will request the court to send him to judicial lock-up.
Earlier, the chief minister directed the IG of Punjab police to include Mr Yousaf in the investigation.
The directive quoted Mr Sharif as saying he believed in the rule of law throughout his life and, as a chief minister, he considered himself answerable to Allah Almighty and the people of the province.
In the evening, the chief minister chaired a meeting of the Pakistan Muslim League-N’s and official media managers “to find out the black sheep” that revealed the incident seven days after its occurrence, sources said. The meeting decided to quiz all the “suspects”.
However, an official spokesman denied that Shahbaz Sharif had chaired any such meeting, saying he had a busy schedule for the day.
BAIL: A judicial magistrate granted bail to seven Elite Police Force personnel and a man said to be private bodyguard of Mr Yousaf. The magistrate directed the accused to submit surety bonds of Rs40,000 each. The policemen and the private guard had tortured the bakery’s employee Irfan after he refused to deliver a cake to a woman customer whom they had escorted to the shop. The woman was stated to be the daughter of the chief minister.
