Lahore [Pakistan]: Soon after reports emerged that Lahore has been placed under Section 144, banning public gatherings, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Wednesday claimed that its peaceful workers were arrested, Pakistan based The Express Tribune Newspaper reported.
Details on the arrested workers, however, remain unclear. According to a notification being shared on social media, the Punjab caretaker government has imposed a ban on all kinds of assemblies, gatherings and rallies citing “serious security threats” and fears of “disruption of traffic”.
The PTI was on Wednesday scheduled to hold a rally for a power show in the provincial capital.
Furthermore, Aurat March was also scheduled to take place today near Faletti’s hotel after the Lahore High Court (LHC) had ruled that ensuring the safety of the rally’s participants was the responsibility of the local administration, according to The Express Tribune.
PTI leader and former federal minister Hammad Azhar took the caretaker setup in Punjab to task for “taking dictation” and engaging in political persecution against his party.
Speaking at Zaman Park, he said that the government was actively blocking the party from holding its rally.
“The premises have been blocked by containers, our workers are being arrested, our flags were being transported and the vehicle was also attacked,” Azhar claimed, as quoted by The Express Tribune.
“I implore this so-called non-partisan caretaker government: your constitutional purpose is to hold polls, and you are saying that for the next seven days, there will be no public gatherings in the city,” Azhar said as he stressed that the election date had already been fixed for April 30 and the schedule is expected to be issued by the ECP today.
“What kind of elections will you be holding if no political activity is permitted?” he questioned.
He claimed that on Tuesday night he spoke with the SSP operations and reviewed the security situation in the provincial capital and no such concerns were raised at the time, according to The Express Tribune.
He said: “And just now the imposed controversial government of Mohsin Naqvi has imposed the ban [on gatherings] in Lahore.”
The PTI recently announced that they will hold a “historic” rally in Lahore on Wednesday, which will be attended by party chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan, Tribune reported.
Earlier, Imran Khan stated that “those in power” were behind the Wazirabad assassination attempt on him.
He named Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and an intelligence official, Pakistan-based Dawn newspaper reported. Addressing PTI loyalists, Khan said he had never “bowed before any man or institution, and will never let you do so as well”, Pakistan-based Dawn newspaper reported.
