ISLAMABAD: Former aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan was arrested in the early hours of Wednesday in Islamabad in connection to the May 9 riots case, according to police official.

Rawalpindi police spokesperson Inspector Sajjadul Hassan confirmed to Dawn.com that the ex-minister was arrested in a joint raid carried out by Pindi and capital police in the capital.

The police also took into custody former National Assembly member Mansoor Hayat Khan and ex-Punjab MPA Ammar Siddique Khan during the raid, he added.

Screengrab from a video footage shows police team enters a house of Ghulam Sarwar’s friend to arrest him and others.
The official said the PTI-era aviation minister, along with others arrested, had been transferred to a police station in Taxila.

According to the official, the authorities had been searching for the former aviation minister for more than a month in relation to the May 9 violence case, in which he has also been named as a suspect among others.

It is pertinent to mention here that, unlike some other leaders, former minister Sarwar has not announced his departure from the PTI or resigned from any party position at this time.

On Tuesday, a Lahore anti-terrorism court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for PTI chief Imran Khan and several other former and current party leaders in cases pertaining to vandalism during the May 9 riots.