Politics

Imran Khan announces ‘Jail Bharo’ movement from Wednesday

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

“We will fill jails, they [authorities] will have no space left to hide.”
PTI chief says it’s dangerous CEC is showing inability on conducting polls.
“Caretaker chief ministers would be illegal on 91st day,” claims Khan.

Blaming the incumbent coalition government for its “political victimisation” of his party leaders and allies, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has announced kickstarting the ‘Jail Bharo’ (court arrest) movement from Wednesday, starting from Lahore.

“We will fill jails, they [authorities] will have no space left to hide,” he said while warning the Pakistan Democratic Movement-led (PDM) government during his address to the nation via video link from Lahore’s Zaman Park residence on Friday, where he has been residing since being shot in the legs on November 3 last year.

In the wake of sedition cases filed against his party leaders including Fawad Chaudhry, Azam Swati and Shahbaz Gill, Imran Khan on February 4 announced “Jail Bharo Tehreek” and asked PTI workers and supporters to prepare for movement across the country.

“They want to enslave us by threatening to put us in jails,” the former prime minister, who was ousted following a vote of no-confidence in April last year, said vowing to fulfil the wish of authorities.

Khan claimed that the police entered the homes of PTI workers in Multan and were tasked with such threatening tactics. “If this work is being done by the police, then won’t the people hate them?”

The interim government is strongly against the PTI, he added.

While referring to the caretaker setup, he said: “The man with a questionable character was brought in. We have a list of 23 people who had inflicted atrocities of which 16 were brought in.”

The PTI chief also recalled the “torture” inflicted on his party’s leaders highlighting the treatment meted out to Swati, Gill and Fawad.

“Never in history have such acts been committed against political opponents,” Khan lamented.

The tensions between the incumbent government and the PTI have heightened, with no sign of respite as the elections in two provinces — Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — near, following the party’s decision to dissolve the assemblies. Punjab and KP assemblies were dissolved by the PTI on January 14 and January 18, respectively.

Firing fresh broadside at the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the PTI chief said: “It is dangerous that the CEC [Chief Election Commissioner] is showing his inability on conducting the election.”

Khan’s fresh criticism comes hours after President Dr Arif Alvi summoned CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja for an urgent meeting on February 20 (Monday) regarding the announcement of the date for fresh general elections.

He said that they dissolved the provincial assemblies of Punjab and KP as per the knowledge that the country’s Constitution clarifies that the elections should be held within 90 days of the dissolution of any assembly.

“The caretaker government and the interim chief ministers would be illegal on the 91st day,” he added.

No disaster could be bigger than that when the judiciary failed to ensure the implementation of the Constitution, he said while hitting out hard at the polls organising authority. “There is no justice where the rule of law collapses.”

Khan said that they had been claiming that the coalition government did not have the mandate and they cannot run the country.

Blaming the interim government for obstructing the probe against the assassination attack on him in Wazirabad on November 3 last year, the PTI chief said “its job is to only conduct elections”.

“The interim government first comes and stops the [joint investigation team] JIT and steals records. When an officer goes to collect the JIT report, it is found that only 11 pages of the report are remaining,” he said, adding that the JIT records are being claimed to have gone missing.

The former premier, lambasting the interim setup in Punjab, said that all links were pointing at them and they were worried about being caught.

Lashing out at the incumbent rulers over the recently announced mini-budget, Khan asked as if raising prices is a “tough decision.”

The government has broken the backbone of people by hiking the prices of all daily-use items, the deposed prime minister added. “[IMF] loans are not the solution to the problems being faced by the country.”

Ruling alliance came into power via ‘auction’

Taking a jibe at the PDM government, Khan said: “They did not come into power via election but auction. The government does not seem to conduct elections in 90 days. They fear elections.”

The ruling alliance wanted to win elections through the rigging, he accused the authorities and at the same time warned that the PTI would not “keep silent over snatching of elections”.

‘Institutions are under pressure’

According to the PTI chief, it seems that institutions are under pressure and the government is running away from elections.

He also vowed that the PTI would not let the government rig the elections, no matter what they do.

Turning his guns towards the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party in Sindh, the former prime minister said the PPP has no vote bank in Karachi but it showed achievement in recent elections in the metropolis.

Referring to journalist Arshad Sharif’s assassination and alleged crackdown against his party’s leadership, Khan said that the government wanted to send them behind the bars, hence, they would launch a court arrest campaign across the country.

Latest News

Containers were used to seal the Red Zone before JI’s sit-in at D-Chowk.

Published

17 hours ago

Farwa

Authorities in Islamabad have blocked off the Red Zone by erecting containers in front of today’s (Friday) Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) demonstration and the Jamaat-i-Islami sit-in at D-Chowk in Islamabad.

Jamaat-i-Islami is scheduled to stage a sit-in at Islamabad’s D-Chowk, and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has declared a nationwide protest against the country’s soaring inflation and recent spike in electricity rates.

Containers have been used to block access to the Red Zone’s main crossroads, D Chowk, Nadra Chowk, and Sarina Chowk.

ISLAMABAD, PUNJAB SECTION 144

In the meantime, in response to PTI and JI plans for statewide rallies, the federal and Punjabi governments enforced Section 144 in Islamabad and Punjab. Section 144 will be in force from Friday, July 26 to Sunday, July 28, per the notification that was released in this regard.

Rallies, sit-ins, protests, and rallies are prohibited from July 26 to July 28, according to a letter from the Home Department. It said that terrorists may find public gatherings to be an easy target and stated that the decision had been made with the threat of terrorism in mind.

In contrast, JI Secretary General Ameerul Azeem claimed in a statement that police had raided the residences of JI officials across the nation.

In an attempt to break up the protest, he said, police had targeted JI leaders and activists. He also alleged that multiple instances of police raids, arrests, and harassment of women had occurred in various towns.

GOVT ADVISED

The government was forewarned by Jamaat Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman earlier on Thursday that it would face consequences if the party was barred from accessing Islamabad for their scheduled demonstration against inflation and an increase in electricity prices.

He stated in a statement that their belief is in peaceful political protest as a means of securing public rights. “We are not afraid of arrests, and the Jamaat-e-Islami cannot be stopped,” he added.

“The historic sit-in on Friday, July 26, will represent 250 million people of Pakistan, and we will sit peacefully at D-Chowk.”

According to the JI, convoys are in route from all around the nation to participate in the sit-in. He encouraged the administration to offer a location for the protest, highlighting that it is their constitutional and democratic right to speak up for the country.

“Any political party that wishes to participate” was invited, and he welcomed them all.

Prior to the sit-in, police raided the residences of JI leaders and officials in many parts of Punjab and Rawalpindi, making multiple arrests.

Ameerul Azim, the central secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami, was not able to be arrested during the police raid; instead, Shaukat Mahmood, his driver, was taken into custody.

Latest News

The Socioeconomic Registry of Punjab. Real data gathering is essential to effective governance. Maryam

Published

17 hours ago

Farwa

Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab, announced that the province will introduce the “Apna Ghar Scheme,” adding that accurate data collecting is necessary in order to provide social security to the impoverished.

At the Punjab Socio-Economic Registry’s opening event in Lahore, the Maryam announced that the province’s government has started the “Roshan Gharana” project, which aims to provide 4.5 million individuals with solar panels on manageable installment plans.

Maryam Nawaz, who emphasized the necessity of centralized data, stated that data has become increasingly important in recent years since it makes basic amenities more accessible and aids in the classification of the poor.

She stated that several initiatives are being taken by the Punjabi government to assist those with disabilities.

The Punjab government, led by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, is dedicated to providing relief to the poor, according to Senior Provincial Minister Punjab Marriyum Aurangzeb, who spoke on the occasion.

The government, she noted, is concentrating on health and education services.

Latest News

The ECP asks the SC to clarify the ruling in the PTI reserved seat case.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Seeking clarity on a court ruling concerning the allotment of particular seats to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) moved the Supreme Court on Monday.

ECP members reportedly agreed unanimously on the SC’s decision to consult the SC.

Particularly cited under Paragraph 10 of the Supreme Court ruling, the ECP has called attention to vagueness in the ruling. In order to determine which body is in charge of party certificate issuance, the ECP is asking the Supreme Court for advice.

Concerning the validity of PTI’s party structure, the ECP pointed out that the organisation hasn’t held internal elections.

In the lack of distinct party organisation and intra-party elections, there is ambiguity over which certifications hold recognition.

Position of ECP

The absence of intra-party elections, according to ECP sources, prevents Tehreek-e-Insaaf from operating as a legitimate organisation.

A plea for clarification on party certificate authority and recognition has been made to the Supreme Court by the ECP.

Resolving the existing ambiguity and guaranteeing proper electoral processes will depend on the Supreme Court’s clarity on these issues.

Continue reading: ECP orders implementation of SC ruling regarding PTI reserved seats

Previous to this, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) reserved seat verdict will be implemented, according to a Friday announcement made by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) of Pakistan.

On Friday, a meeting of ECP members was chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja.

If the SC ruling is being carried out with any judicial decision becoming a roadblock, ECP has resolved to seek guidance from the judges in the room.

“The Supreme Court will be consulted for additional guidance in the event of any obstacles,” the ECP statement stated.

ECP declines resignation demand and political party criticism.

The chief election commissioner and members have been the target of persistent attack from a political party, which the highest electoral authority has sharply denounced. No political name was mentioned by the ECP.

The ECP called the demand for resignation from the party “absurd” and rejected the political party’s unjustified criticism, which had been made continuously.

Regardless of the pressure, the statement said, ECP would keep up its adherence to the law and the Constitution.