[Current Affairs] November 11,2020 Top Pakistan Current Affairs for Entry Test Preparation

2. Intelligence officers and Rangers behind the arrest of ex-PM’s son-in-law

What’s going on? Yesterday, the Pakistan army’s media wing announced the suspension of some intelligence officers and paramilitary Rangers. It’s unclear how many were removed, and further proceedings are pending.

The details: The army’s investigation revealed that officers from the Pakistan Rangers in Sindh and Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) HQ in Karachi were involved in the arrest of opposition politician, retired Captain Muhammad Safdar. Safdar is a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader, and son-in-law of former PM Nawaz Sharif. Last month, PML-N leader, Muhammad Zubair, claimed that Rangers abducted Sindh police chief, Mushtaq Mehar, and made him sign orders for Safdar’s arrest.

Tell me more: Sharif, thinks the army’s inquiry into Safdar’s arrest is bogus. Sharif claimed the inquiry report is a “cover up,” and that the army is pointing fingers at easy scapegoats (i.e. junior officers) to protect “the real culprits.” However, a spokesperson for the opposition-led anti-govt movement (i.e Pakistan Democratic Movement), called the report “a victory of the democratic forces.” Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, initially urged the army chief and ISI director general to investigate Safdar’s arrest. He welcomed the inquiry report, calling it “good news.”

The context: Last month, police arrested Safdar from his hotel room in Karachi. He was charged for allegedly violating the sanctity of Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s (i.e. Quaid-i-Azam’s) mausoleum. He was arrested a day after raising anti-govt slogans at the mausoleum, and released hours later.

The bottom line: The army didn’t outright say Rangers and intelligence officers “abducted” Sindh’s police chief. The army only said officers were under public pressure to take lawful action against the “desecration” of Jinnah’s tomb, thought the local police were being to slow, and ended up going overboard. The army’s statement still contradicts a comment PM Imran Khan’s aide made last month. When talking about Safdar’s arrest, Special Assistant to the PM on Political Communi­cation, Shahbaz Gill, said the opposition is trying to “orchestrate drama.”