Police return without arresting Parvez Elahi in Gujrat

• Reason behind police's raid of ex-Punjab CM's house unclear.
• Elahi blames police for trying to enter his house forcefully.
• Sindh Police arrest Elahi's ex-principal secretary in Matiari.

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LAHORE/GUJRAT: Punjab Police Monday raided the residence of former Punjab chief minister Parvez Elahi — a close ally of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan — in Gujrat, but have returned without making any arrests.

Pakistan Muslim League Quaid (PML-Q) leader Moonis Elahi, who is also Elahi’s son, has shared the video of Punjab Police raiding his father’s residence in his hometown on his Twitter account.

While the reason behind the raid remains unclear, Elahi had earlier claimed about police surrounding his home in Gujrat and also said that they have tried to break in.

“A heavy contingent of police is present outside my residence in Gujrat. They are trying to break into the house,” the former CM said.

The PML-Q leader also spoke about his ex-principal secretary Mohammad Khan Bhatti’s home being surrounded by the police. Bhatti has been arrested from the Matiari district in Sindh.

The ex-CM’s principal secretary was apprehended while going to the Sindh High Court for protective bail. Bhatti was taken into custody by Sindh Police under the supervision of Hyderabad's senior superintendent of police.

Speaking about his fears regarding Bhatti’s arrest, Elahi said: "I fear that Muhammad Khan Bhatti will be rendered missing. What message is being given by doing this to the leaders of Punjab from Sindh."

Elahi demanded Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah take immediate notice of the "lawlessness". "I’m sure CM Sindh will obstruct such a move that will cause unrest in the provinces," he said.

The police also earlier raided Bhatti’s official residence in Lahore’s GOR, sources told Geo News.

A heavy contingent of police, according to the sources, entered the former principal secretary’s house and confiscated mobile phones from the servants.

The sources said that police arrested a servant Nabeel — a Punjab Assembly staffer — who was on duty at Bhatti’s residence.

The police have also taken CCTV footage from the ex-principle secretary’s house in the raid.

The developments came after the arrests of PTI leaders and the party's allies took place at regular intervals. PTI Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry was arrested and later released on bail, while Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rasheed is still behind bars.