Upon being asked if he was being pressured to leave the party by a reporter, he said, “I was in the party, I am in the party, and will remain in the party.”

Qureshi’s release had been ordered by the Islamabad High Court after he agreed to give an undertaking that he would not participate in violent protests.

Shah Mahmood was detained under the Maintainance of Public Order on May 11, two days after protests broke out after Imran Khan was arrested by Rangers in Islamabad. Speculation had intensified that he was being pressured into leaving the party after Shireen Mazari announced her resignation.

This story is being updated.