LAHORE: As the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has decided to start an agitation again – this time against the “sky-rocketing inflation and economic meltdown” – asking the party

MNAs and MPAs to hold rallies at the district level, its Lahore chapter has planned only three rallies – one each on every Sunday.

It has been announced that party Chairman Imran Khan will join the protesters “in person” after three weeks.

As per the schedule announced for Lahore, the PTI organisations in Data Ganj Bakhsh, Samanabad, Ravi and Shalamar towns will take out a protest rally from Azadi Chowk to Chauburji on Jan 1 (Sunday).

The second rally will be organised by Allama Iqbal, Gulberg, Walton Cantt and Nishtar towns bodies from Thokar Niaz Beg to Chungi on Ferozepur Road on Jan 8 (Sunday), and the third one by Wagah, Aziz Bhatti and Lahore Cantt towns organisers from Harbanspura Chowk to Dharampura Chowk on Jan 15 (Sunday).

The PTI, however, organised mass protest rallies in Jehlum and D.G. Khan on Friday where the protesters chanted their favourite slogans -- “imported government na-manzoor”, “chor hakoomat na-manzoor”. They demanded early elections to “save Pakistan from political and economic crises.”

Similarly, across Punjab, the party will hold rallies at the districts level instead of constituency level, as formally announced by its senior leader Fawad Chaudhry.

The party will start its protest drive from Gujranwala on Dec 31, that will culminate in Sialkot on Jan 16.

Besides Lahore, the protest rallies will be organised at Multan, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad on Jan 1; Sialkot Jan 2, Attock Jan 3 and Jehlum on Jan 4 and 5.

The PTI will hold a protest demonstration at DG Khan on Jan 6 and Sheikhupura on Jan 7. The demonstrations will also be held in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi on Jan 8. Rallies in Sialkot and Gujrat will be organised on Jan 9 and 10, respectively.

On Jan 11, anti-inflation protests will be held at Jhelum, Gujranwala (Jan 12), Sahiwal (Jan 13) and Bahawalpur (Jan 14). On Jan 15, the demonstrations will be held in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi and in Sialkot on Jan 16.

Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2022

Opinion

Editorial

Anti-women state
Updated 25 Nov, 2024

Anti-women state

GLOBALLY, women are tormented by the worst tools of exploitation: rape, sexual abuse, GBV, IPV, and more are among...
IT sector concerns
25 Nov, 2024

IT sector concerns

PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ambitious plan to increase Pakistan’s IT exports from $3.2bn to $25bn in the ...
Israel’s war crimes
25 Nov, 2024

Israel’s war crimes

WHILE some powerful states are shielding Israel from censure, the court of global opinion is quite clear: there is...
Short-changed?
Updated 24 Nov, 2024

Short-changed?

As nations continue to argue, the international community must recognise that climate finance is not merely about numbers.
Overblown ‘threat’
24 Nov, 2024

Overblown ‘threat’

ON the eve of the PTI’s ‘do or die’ protest in the federal capital, there seemed to be little evidence of the...
Exclusive politics
24 Nov, 2024

Exclusive politics

THERE has been a gradual erasure of the voices of most marginalised groups from Pakistan’s mainstream political...