OKARA: Continuing to criticise the rival political parties in his characteristic style, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan announced on Tuesday launch of the Movement for Restoration and Provision of Justice (MRPJ) in the country.

Speaking to a large gathering at Okara’s Football Ground during campaign for party candidate Muhammad Ashraf Khan Sohna for NA-144 by-election, he once again pledged to eradicate the scourge of corruption and injustice from society. He quoted the teachings and precepts of Hazrat Ali and the philosophy Muslim scholar Ibne Khuldun to explain his idea of a just society.

He said mere wealth or military strength could not ensure stability of a government. “This is the very difference between the developed society of the West and Pakistan, where the privileged class lives beyond all laws and the have-nots have to undergo oppression.”

In our country, he deplored, the minorities were living under oppression and the common man like a farmer toiled under severe weather conditions but was denied reward.

The PTI supremo said Nawaz Sharif had thrice occupied the PM office but could not change anything. “The only change they believe in is accumulating wealth on the pretext of metro buses, underpasses and flyovers,” he said. He said the money spent on the Daanish School System in Punjab could have been used to restore 21,000 schools with all facilities.

The 14-point Kissan Package had been announced without any consultation or consent of the provincial governments, he said, adding that the KP, Sindh and Balochistan governments did not have resources to pay their share of subsidy.

He quoted Senator Aitzaz Ahsan as having said that during the last three years Nawaz Sharif had deposited just Rs470 annual tax. He said Nepra had doubled the electricity rates but there was no relief in outages.

Imran pledged to the farmers that he would bring down the rates of all agriculture inputs in a five-year agriculture plan. In KP, he said, the accountability system was very strong and 5,000 policemen had been terminated from service for incompetence.

He said PTI MPA Masud Shafqat Rubera would be served with show-cause notice and ousted from the PTI for his dissent.

Earlier, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Samsam Ali Bokhari, Ashraf Sohna, Chaudhry Azhar Mehmood, Muhammad Anwar Pasha and Qari Hafizullah Baloch spoke.

Chaudhry Saleem Sadiq, the Markazi Anjuman-i-Tajran president, announced joining the PTI along with his colleagues.

Published in Dawn, October 8th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play