ISLAMABAD: Tensions rose in Pakistan once again after former prime minister Imran Khan accused the interim Punjab administration on Saturday of killing one of his party workers in police custody while promising to lead an election rally in the eastern Lahore city on Sunday.
Khan called off the public rally last Wednesday after clashes broke out between the police and his party supporters outside his residence in the city. The law enforcement agency made several arrests before a PTI activist, Ali Bilal, was found dead.
The father of the deceased blamed the provincial chief minister and top police officials for the death, though the authorities denied they had anything to do with it.
Punjab Inspector General Police Dr. Usman Anwar rejected Bilal’s death was a case of custodial killing while addressing a news conference, saying it was a road accident. He also showed pictures of a black vehicle that brought the body of the PTI activist to a local hospital while announcing that two suspects had been arrested in the case.
“It is hard for me to imagine the kind of savages who tortured him like this,” Khan said in response to the media talk while continuing to accuse the police of custodial torture and killing. “What kind of mindset was it that led to something like this?”
“I will lead the election rally at 2pm tomorrow,” he continued. “I am asking the people of Lahore to step out with me and tell everyone we are not animals.”
He blamed the senior police officials of trying to “cover up” the truth in the case. Khan also urged the Lahore High Court chief justice to form a judicial commission to probe Bilal’s death.
Earlier, senior PTI vice president Chaudhry Fawad Hussain demanded the immediate removal of Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his cabinet.
He said the whole operation against his party was supervised by the caretaker administration of the province which employed the police to “brutally” torture the participants of the PTI rally.
It may be recalled that Khan and his top party colleagues were booked on terrorism charges on Thursday for instigating people to clash with the police and target the government and state institutions.
The former prime minister is already facing various charges in more than 70 cases, with many of them pending before local courts.
