ISLAMABAD: Pakistani police have arrested ex-federal minister and former prime minister Imran Khan’s close aide Hammad Azhar, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said on Sunday, as local media widely reported Azhar was arrested from the eastern city of Multan for his alleged involvement in the May 2023 protests.

Azhar served as the federal minister for revenue and later as finance minister in Khan’s government, who was prime minister from 2018 to April 2022. Azhar was involved in several cases related to the May 9, 2023 riots, when angry Khan supporters attacked military installations and government buildings across Pakistan in response to his brief arrest on corruption allegations.

The former minister, who kept his whereabouts mostly hidden out of fear of being caught since the May 2023 riots, was declared a proclaimed offender by an Anti-Terrorism Court in Lahore in May 2025.

Pakistani newspaper The Express Tribune reported Azhar was taken into custody from the home of a friend in Multan. Citing police sources, the newspaper said he was wanted in the May 9 case involving an attack on the Government Officers’ Residence (GOR) Gate.

“Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has strongly condemned the arrest of former federal minister and former member of the National Assembly Hammad Azhar, describing it as a continuation of political victimization, state repression, and fascist tactics,” the party said in a statement.

The PTI said Azhar has been subjected to politically motivated acts of vengeance, accusing the government of harassing its political opponents and silencing the PTI’s voice.

It demanded Azhar be presented before a court in accordance with the law.

“Arbitrarily arresting political workers and leaders and creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation is contrary to the spirit of democracy and the constitution,” it added.

Multan police chief Sadiq Ali Dogar did not respond to queries from Arab News seeking confirmation of Azhar’s arrest.

Apart from being a former federal minister, Azhar was also a senior leader of the PTI. He resigned as the president of the PTI’s Punjab chapter in August 2024, citing restrictions on his movements and what he described as a lack of access to Khan, who has been in prison since 2023.

Pakistan’s government has accused Khan and his party of inciting violent protests against the government. The PTI denies these claims and has repeatedly said it never encouraged its supporters to resort to violence during the May 2023 riots.

Khan, 73, was ousted as prime minister in 2022 after losing a parliamentary vote. He has since faced dozens of legal cases and remains in prison, while his party says the charges against him are politically motivated.

The May 2023 protests were among the most serious challenges to Pakistan’s powerful military in decades. Hundreds of protesters were arrested after the violence, with authorities launching a sweeping crackdown against Khan’s party supporters and leaders, whom they accused of being involved in the unrest.