ISLAMABAD: Police in Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore on Wednesday said they would not arrest leaders of former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, who launched its "fill up prisons" anti-government campaign today, saying that they have not received orders to do so.
The PTI kicked off its anti-government movement in Lahore, with senior leaders of the party saying initially five key leaders, along with 200 supporters, had presented themselves to be arrested in Lahore.
Khan announced his plan to initiate the campaign on February 4 after several members of his party were apprehended by authorities in recent months. Many of these leaders were taken into custody on sedition charges after they made critical comments against top military officials or other government functionaries.
Speaking to Arab News, Punjab Police spokesperson Syed Nayab Haider Naqvi said police had not received orders to arrest PTI leaders.
“The police have not received any orders about the arrests and would not take PTI leaders in custody until ordered by the Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore,” Naqvi, told Arab News.
“We have no orders to arrest the leaders and will not take them into custody,” he said, adding that the final decision would be taken by the Lahore police chief if the party's supporters take the law and order into their hands.
“On the violation of section 144 and if they will create a law-and-order situation then CCPO Lahore will decide about the arrests,” he added.
A day earlier, the caretaker Punjab government imposed Section 144 (which empowers administrations to ban political gatherings for a specific period in the larger interest of the public) in light of security challenges and ahead of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches to be played in Lahore.
Khan, in a televised address, commended the people of Lahore for coming out and supporting his anti-government campaign. The former premier said he had succeeded in his aim to rid the people of fear and instilled in them the desire to stand for their rights.
“I have witnessed today that our movement of real independence has taken away fears from people and they are ready to go to jails,” Khan said, warning the government and police from taking any illegal action against his supporters.
“Do whatever you want, our government will come, the policemen who did wrong to us before this were spared but this time, you will not be spared, this is my promise to you," Khan said. "If I am alive, I will bring the oppressor to justice if he attacks innocent people,” he added.
Senior PTI leader Senator Shibli Faraz said PTI leaders had gathered at Lahore’s Charing Cross where around five leaders and 200 supporters would present themselves for arrest.
“But many more volunteers have arrived at the given [location] to [be taken into custody],” Faraz told Arab News over the phone from Lahore.
“The leaders include Waleed Iqbal, Mian Aslam Iqbal, Murad Raas, and Umer Sarfraz Cheema, while Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Asad Umer are also ready to present themselves for arrest,” he said.
Faraz added that the aim of the movement was to pressurize the federal government to hold early elections. “These people were threatening us from selective arrests of our leaders and we presented ourselves voluntarily for arrests in bulk so that they should know we are not afraid,” he added.
Farrukh Habib, the PTI’s secretary information, said his party violated section 144 to ensure they were arrested. “Our leaders have surrendered themselves and are ready to be [transported to jails] in police prisoner vans,” he told Arab News.
“If they will not arrest [us], we will keep sitting at the Charing Cross,” he said, adding that the protest was against the alleged violation of human rights and torture of PTI leaders by the current government.
“After Lahore, we will [surrender ourselves for] arrests in Peshawar tomorrow, [followed by] Multan, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, and other big cities where local PTI members, leaders, and workers [present themselves to be arrested],” he added.
On the other hand, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said Khan's "fill up prisons" movement is a conspiracy against Pakistan especially at a time when the country faces the worst economic crisis.
“After several abandoned plans in the past nine months, he has hatched a new conspiracy in the form of the Jail Bharo movement,” she said, addressing reporters in Islamabad.
“The show [being put on] today is that the court, FIA, NAB, and institutions are calling you but what are you doing? Jail Bharo Tehreek, which is starting from the leader’s bail and movements that start from bail are Jail Bacho Tehreek [save from the jail movement],” she added.
The minister called the latest campaign by the PTI a "drama" and questioned the arrest of innocent people instead of Imran Khan, who was summoned to present his stance in the diplomatic cipher conspiracy and the Toshakhana case.
“These are not political arrests, these are criminal arrests," she added.
She said on the one hand, Khan was responsible for political instability while on the other hand, he demanded the country's economy be stabilized.
