PESHAWAR: Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party on Sunday held a rally in Pakistan’s northwest to protest alleged killings of a dozen of its supporters during last month’s protest in Islamabad, but made no announcement regarding a civil disobedience movement Khan had hinted at this month.
Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Nov. 24 led thousands of supporters to Islamabad, seeking to pressure the government to release the ex-premier from jail and order an audit of Feb. 8 national election results. The protests resulted in clashes that Pakistan’s government says killed four law enforcers and injured hundreds of others.
The PTI says at least 12 of its supporters were killed and another 37 sustained gunshot injuries due to firing by law enforcers near Islamabad’s Jinnah Avenue on Nov. 26, while 139 of its supporters were still “missing.” Pakistani authorities have denied the deaths, saying security personnel had not been carrying live ammunition during the protest.
On Sunday, the party held a ‘martyrs’ day’ gathering in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, at which the attendees offered prayers for the ones who allegedly died during the Islamabad protest.
“The reason [to hold the gathering] was to offer prayers for those who were killed on [Islamabad’s] D-Chowk on November 26,” Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Excise and Taxation Minister Khaliq-ur-Rehman told Arab News.
“We had a peaceful protest.”
Speaking to international media journalists on Sunday afternoon, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said they were demanding the release of Khan and challenging the results of Feb. 8 polls, criticizing authorities for allegedly shooting unarmed protesters in Islamabad.
“Is this the state’s job to fire at unarmed people,” he questioned. “Is this the state’s job that it won’t allow a party hold a protest?“
Last week, the PTI filed a petition in an Islamabad court against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and other officials over “firing” on its supporters during the Islamabad protest. The government has accused the PTI of waging a “propaganda” regarding the Islamabad protest, following statements by several PTI members that gave varied accounts of casualties.
The PTI has staged several protests this year to demand the release of Khan and to challenge results of the Feb. 8 national election, which it says were manipulated to favor its opponents. The Pakistani government and election authorities deny this.
Last month’s protests were by far the largest to grip the capital since the poll, while Khan, who remains a popular figure in Pakistan despite being in prison and facing several court cases, on Dec. 6 threatened to launch a civil disobedience movement.
Asked about the movement, Ali Muhammad Khan, a PTI lawmaker, said Khan had formed a committee to hold talks with authorities on their demands for the release all political prisoners and for setting up judicial commissions to investigate the Nov. 24 protest and violence on May 9, 2023, which killed eight people.
“If anything comes out of the negotiations, well and good, otherwise, Khan will announce the next move,” Ali told Arab News at the Peshawar public gathering. “Whatever Khan orders, we will follow.”
Shandana Gulzar, another PTI lawmaker, said they were awaiting detailed instructions from the party founder about the movement.
“Whatever order Khan gives from the prison... we are ready,” she added.
Thousands gather in Peshawar to protest alleged killings at last month’s pro-Imran Khan protests
https://arab.news/wkqea
Thousands gather in Peshawar to protest alleged killings at last month’s pro-Imran Khan protests
- The party remains short of announcing the start of a civil disobedience movement as was anticipated by many
- A Khan aide says they are awaiting outcome of talks with authorities and will follow whatever the ex-PM says
Pakistan reviews austerity measures amid Middle East crisis, urges strict nationwide implementation
- Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar chairs review meeting of austerity steps
- Officials briefed on salary cuts, school closures, four‑day week, petrol conservation
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government on Wednesday assessed progress on a sweeping set of austerity measures introduced to mitigate the country’s economic strain from sharply rising global oil prices and supply disruptions linked to the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif this week announced a series of austerity steps, including a four‑day work week for government offices, requiring 50 percent of staff to work from home, cutting fuel allowances for official vehicles by half, grounding up to 60 percent of the government fleet and closing all schools for two weeks to conserve fuel amid the global oil crisis.
The measures were unveiled in response to global oil market volatility triggered by the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which has disrupted supply routes such as the Strait of Hormuz and pushed crude prices sharply higher, straining Pakistan’s heavily import‑dependent energy sector.
“The meeting stressed the importance of strict and transparent adherence to the austerity measures, promoting fiscal responsibility and prudent use of public resources,” Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar said in a statement.
He was chairing a meeting of the Committee for Monitoring and Implementation of Conservation and Additional Austerity Measures, constituted under the directions of the PM, bringing together federal and provincial officials to review execution of the broad cost‑cutting plan.
Dar emphasized the government’s commitment to enforcing the PM’s austerity steps nationwide. The committee’s review also covered reductions in departmental expenditure, deductions from salaries of senior officials earning over Rs. 300,000 ($1,120), and coordination with provincial administrations to ensure uniform implementation of the plan.
Participants at the meeting reiterated that all ministries and divisions must continue strict monitoring and reporting, with transparent oversight mechanisms, as Pakistan navigates the economic pressures from the prolonged Middle East crisis and its fallout on global energy and trade markets.
