ISLAMABAD: Police on Saturday detained at least 67 Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) activists from various parts of the country who were protesting against the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan.
The PTI workers took to the streets shortly after the trial court hearing the Toshakhana case declared the PTI chief guilty and sentenced him to three years in jail.
The court had ordered the immediate arrest of Imran Khan and also imposed a fine of Rs100,000. Khan was transferred from Lahore to Islamabad via motorway, where he is expected to be lodged in Attock Jail and kept in a lock-up in high-security zone.
The PTI workers were arrested by police outside Imran Khan’s Zaman Park residence in Lahore, where they were gathering to express solidarity with the former premier.
Police transferred 33 protesting workers including two women in vans to various police stations. The workers were not even allowed to hold a peaceful demonstration outside Khan’s Zaman Park residence.
Sources said that the police were instructed to promptly apprehend any PTI workers seen protesting across the city.
In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s provincial capital Peshawar, the police detained 15 protesting workers, who had gathered near Pir Zakari Flyover, under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (3MPO).
The police launched a crackdown on the workers who subsequently dispersed after the onslaught from the law enforcers.
In Sindh’s capital Karachi, various locations across the city witnessed protests against the arrest as demonstrators rallied against the move, leading to confrontations with the police.
So far the authorities have taken custody of 19 protestors from different parts of the city.
In a demonstration held at the Karachi Press Club, PTI workers expressed their dissent over the arrest. Police detained six protesters and transferred them to Artillery Maidan police station for legal action.
According to SSP South Asad Raza, PTI workers staged protests at two locations in District Malir. During the crackdown on protesters, the police took custody of 11 activists.
Additionally, 11 PTI activists have been placed under custody, according to SSP Malir Hasan Sardar. Five of them were taken to Sharafi Goth police station, while the remaining six were moved to Qaidabad police station.
In North Nazimabad’s Block (K), the local police took three protestors into custody. SSP Central Maroof Usman stated that legal proceedings are underway against the detained activists.
Earlier in the day, PTI stalwart Shah Mahmood Qureshi had urged supporters to not take the law into their own hands.
“Peaceful protest is our right but no state asset is to be damaged. Don’t take the law in your hands,” he cautioned, in a video statement released shortly after the decision against PTI chief.
He rejected the verdict issued by a district and sessions court in Islamabad, wherein Judge Humayun Dilawar declared the former premier as an “established dishonest beyond doubt”.
Qureshi also asked party supporters to continue efforts for the PTI chief’s release peacefully while assuring them that the action plan moving forward is being prepared.
