Radio Pakistan building torched in Peshawar during May 9 violent protests.
Police say main suspect taken into custody from the Pakha Ghulam area.
The radio station, which dates back to 1935, holds a prominent place in history.
PESHAWAR: The Peshawar police arrested the main suspect who allegedly torched the Radio Pakistan building in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s capital during May 9 violent protests across the country, officials said Monday.
The suspect was taken into custody from the Pakha Ghulam area of the provincial capital.
Violent protesters including workers and supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) launched an attack on the historic structure after party’s chairman Imran Khan was arrested on May 9 by Punjab Rangers to comply with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) arrest warrant in the Al-Qadir Trust case.
Khan’s arrest infuriated party activists who took to the streets in several cities across the country damaging public and private property including military installations.
Peshawar was also one of the cities where supporters of PTI unleashed havoc. In the city, protestors stormed the historic Radio Pakistan building and went on a vandalising rampage that culminated in setting the building ablaze.
Angry protesters did not only set fire to the historic building, but also plundered it.
The charred interior of the building shows extensive damage as the arson followed vandalism and looting.
The resulting inferno consumed irreplaceable records and other invaluable items, resulting in significant losses.
The radio station, which dates back to 1935, holds a prominent place in history.
It telecast the monumental news of Pakistan’s formation on August 14, 1947, in both Pashto and Urdu languages.
Throughout the years, the station continued to serve as a vital source of information, particularly during critical moments such as the 1965 Pak-India war and the Afghan conflict. Notably, Radio Pakistan’s past reporting on acts of terrorism earned widespread acclaim.
The present-day building that houses Radio Pakistan was inaugurated on April 28, 1985, by then-president General Ziaul Haque.
Radio Pakistan’s offices are housed on the first three floors of the building, while the topmost floor has the offices of the state news agency, APP, which too was damaged.