ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi on Thursday condemned the ransacking of public and private properties by miscreants during countrywide protests triggered by the arrest of PTI chief Imran Khan.

In a letter to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the president expressed anger over the way Mr Khan was arrested on May 9 from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

“I and the people of Pakistan were shocked to see video images of the incident which reflect the manhandling of the former prime minister who is … substantially supported by the people of Pakistan.,” he said.

Dr Alvi added that the clumsy hubris in which Mr Khan’s arrest was carried out, had tarnished Pakistan’s image in the international community.

“This kind of incident should not happen with anybody and the justification that such incidents have happened before, does not make them right today,” he added.

“Of course, he [Imran] has a large number of followers who were emotionally charged after watching such scenes of his arrest and dragging of their leader by the security officials despite his injured leg due to an assassination attempt on him,” Dr Alvi wrote in the letter.

“The painful event led to attacks by mobs on public assets, including buildings of the armed forces. I believe that the people have a right to protest, but they should remain peaceful and within the bounds of the law,” the president said.

Earlier, the president condemned the damage done to public property by miscreants and appealed to the people to remain peaceful.

“The way some miscreants have damaged public property, particularly government and military buildings, is condemnable.”

The president said that the loss of human lives in the aftermath of Mr Khan’s arrest was “heart-wrenching, regrettable, unfortunate and highly condemnable”.

He said that he was “alarmed, shocked and deeply disturbed” over the current situation in the country.

“We must rethink and look for a political solution rather than coercion and arrests,” the president said.

Published in Dawn, May 12th, 2023