LAHORE: Punjab’s anti-corruption watchdog on Thursday claimed to have rearrested “missing” PTI MNA, Haji Imtiaz Ahmed, from Multan airport.

In a statement, an Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) spokesperson said the lawmaker was trying to board a flight for Qatar when he was arrested at the Multan airport.

The whereabouts of the lawmaker had been unknown since armed men attacked a convoy on the new Shadiwal Road near Gujranwala and freed him from ACE’s custody on July 31.

The ACE arrested him for allegedly receiving a Rs2 million commission in a development scheme.

Punjab ACE claims lawmaker was trying to board flight to Qatar

A team of the anti-corruption watchdog was bringing him back to Gujranwala from Mianwali — where he was taken for the recovery of the commission money — when around a dozen armed men in three vehicles intercepted the official vehicle and opened indiscriminate fire. The ACE officials left the vehicle to find shelter as the armed men took away the MNA.

After the “kidnapping” of their party members, PTI lawmakers raised the matter in the parliament and also moved the court for his safe recovery.

In a recent session of the National Assembly, Leader of the Opposition Omar Ayub Khan said Mr Ahmed had been declared “a forcefully disappeared person”.

While addressing the speaker, Mr Khan asked: “Who is torturing him, intelligence agencies or anybody else? The responsibility lies on you, Mr Speaker, as custodian of the house”.

In reply, the speaker, Ayaz Sadiq, told PTI lawmakers that he had been told by the police that Mr Ahmed was neither in their or ACE’s custody.

On the occasion, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also assured the opposition members that he would personally look into the alleged disappearance of Mr Ahmed.

Mr Ahmed had been elected as an independent candidate (backed by the PTI) in the general elections held on February 8. Earlier, he had been elected as an MNA for the first time in 2018 on PTI’s ticket.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2024