5 Pakistan athletes held for shouting 'Go Nawaz Go'

Five Pakistani athletes were Saturday arrested for shouting "Go Nawaz Go" against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during an annual sports event here, two days after he escaped disqualification in a corruption case.

"The railways police arrested five young athletes for chanting 'Go Nawaz Go' during the speech of Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique at the railways headquarters in Lahore," an official told PTI.

The official said the minister ordered his staff to stop those chanting slogans against the prime minister. "However, when the five athletes refused to comply with the minister's order, the railways police intervened and took them into custody. The police also tortured them for raising slogans against the prime minister," the official said.

Although railways spokesman Najam Wali claimed that the athletes have been set free, the railways police have summoned their parents to settle the matter.

"The young sportsmen will be allowed to go home after they and their parents tender a written apology," the official said. Opposition Pakistan Tahreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan People's Party said the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has been unnerved after the Supreme Court's decision in the Panama Papers leaks case two days ago.

"Now from ever nook and corner of the country 'Go Nawaz Go' slogan will be raised and how many the government will arrest," said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Ejaz Chaudhry.

The Supreme Court though found that the evidence against Nawaz Sharif was "insufficient", it ordered the constitution of a joint investigation team to probe the allegations of corruption against him and his family. The high-profile case is about alleged money laundering by Sharif in 1990s when he twice served as the prime minister to purchase assets in London. The assets surfaced when Panama Papers leaks last year showed that they were managed through offshore companies owned by Sharif's children.

Source: Timesofoman