ISLAMABAD: PTI’s Islamabad wing held a protest in the federal capital on Friday despite Section 144 being in place, which restricts public gatherings.
It is worth mentioning that Tehreek Tahaffuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) and PTI had given a call to hold countrywide protests against former prime minister Imran Khan’s imprisonment, rising inflation and other issues on Friday.
The protest, held on Lehtrar Road near Taramri Chowk, was organised under the direction of PTI Islamabad President Aamir Mughal and led by General Secretary Malik Aamir Ali.
PTI Islamabad Senior Vice President Raja Sajjad Dhanyal, Women’s Wing President Maimoona Kamal, Youth Wing President Murad Bukhari, Insaf Students Federation representatives and other leaders and activists participated in the protest.
The protesters also demanded the release and proper medical treatment of the PTI founder and highlighted concerns over soaring inflation, deteriorating law and order, and the recent increase in petroleum product prices.
Mughal, speaking to Dawn , said they were aware that the federal police and other law enforcement agencies had made strict arrangements to prevent any kind of protest in the federal capital.
“Section 144 was already imposed in the federal capital, but we knew that we had to hold the protest as it was for founding chairman Imran Khan and against inflation, which has been badly affecting the masses,” he said.
“During the protest, we demanded that Imran Khan be released, inflation be controlled, petroleum product prices be reduced and the rule of law be ensured in Pakistan,” he said.
Mughal said that if the government did not address these issues, PTI would be left with no option but to launch a massive campaign and agitation after Eid.
PTI supporters also held a protest at the Peshawar Press Club. Speaking at a press conference, PTI’s Shandana Gulzar said the movement’s primary agenda was to secure the release of Imran and to stop the “bloodshed of innocent people” in the tribal districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
She alleged that innocent civilians in the province were being targeted in drone strikes and bomb blasts, claiming that women and children had also become victims of violence.
“There is unrest, inflation and insecurity across the country,” she said, adding that the province was being denied its due share of gas, electricity and other resources by the federal government.
Gulzar also criticised the federal and Punjab governments, accusing them of economic mismanagement and political victimisation of PTI workers and leaders.
She further claimed that living conditions had deteriorated to the point where families could no longer afford education or household expenses.
In Lahore, TTAP’s Punjab chapter staged a protest demonstration outside the Lahore Press Club in solidarity with the former prime minister and other political prisoners, demanding their immediate and unconditional release.
The protest was attended by political and social activists, including Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Shayan Bashir Nawaz, Mian Akram Usman, and leaders of the Haqooq-i-Khalq Party, including Ammar Ali Jan and Haider Butt.
The participants condemned what they described as increasing political repression in Punjab, citing heavy police deployment at the protest venue and alleged midnight raids on the homes of political activists a day earlier.
