Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) held a huge rally in the capital Islamabad to demand the release of the imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan. A day after PTI's rally in the capital, law enforcement forces arrested some PTI lawmakers in raids in various parts of the country yesterday.
71-year-old former cricket star and political leader Imran Khan has been in jail for more than a year after being ousted as Pakistan's prime minister in 2022. He was forced to step down after losing a no-confidence vote in parliament in a volatile situation created around disagreements with the country's military generals. A PTI spokesperson said at least 13 of the party's lawmakers were picked up from various locations in Islamabad, though the police said four people had been arrested. Some of them were arrested from outside the Parliament.
In the video footage of the media, it is seen that the policemen are pushing the legislators who are stuck outside the parliament and lifting them into the car. Leader of Opposition in Parliament Omar Ayub Khan condemned the scene as "disgusting".
In a post on social media X, Imran Khan's associate Zulfikar Bukhari said that yesterday's mass protests have sent shivers down the spine of the government. He termed the detention of lawmakers as illegal. PTI chairman Gahar Khan and senior leader Shoaib Shaheen and another spokesperson of the party Sher Afzal Marwat have been detained by the police, Bukhari said.
In the general elections held in Pakistan last February, candidates supported by Imran Khan's PTI won a significant number of seats, but the party failed to secure the majority required to form a government. At that time, the candidates supported by Imran Khan formed a new alliance instead of forming the ruling alliance under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The police were attacked at a PTI rally on the outskirts of Islamabad demanding the release of Imran Khan, police said. An operation was launched yesterday against the suspected attackers as a policeman was injured in the attack. However, PTI says violence broke out as the police fired tear gas at their peaceful rally.
ZH
