ISLAMABAD:The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered immediate release of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan after declaring his arrest in the Al-Qadir Trust case “illegal”.

A three-member Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Athar Minallah issued the verdict on PTI's petition challenging Imran Khan's arrest.

The court sent Imran Khan to the Police Lines Guest House till tomorrow (Friday) and ordered him to present himself before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) tomorrow (Friday). “You will have to accept the high court’s decision,” the CJP told Imran Khan. “The case will resume from where the matters became complicated,” the Chief Justice remarked, adding that a written order will be issued soon.

The court directed the Islamabad Police chief to ensure the ex-premier’s security. “No one can be arrested from the Supreme Court, a high court or an accountability court,” the CJP said. Imran Khan was produced before the apex court by the authorities at 5:40pm- an hour later than ordered by the court. The PTI had filed the petition in the Supreme Court after the Islamabad High Court had declared Imran Khan’s arrest legal on May 9 (the day he was arrested), despite expressing dissatisfaction over the manner of the arrest.