LAHORE: Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari alleges that through disruptive tactics the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) is attempting to sabotage the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit scheduled to be held in Islamabad on Oct 15-16.

She has also blamed a judge for providing protocol to PTI founder Imran Khan’s sister to join a protest in Rawalpindi.

“By holding demonstrations, they want to sabotage the upcoming SCO summit with their disruptive tactics,” she said in a reference to the PTI’s abortive bid to hold a protest demonstration in Rawalpindi on Saturday.

After a flop show in Kahna (Lahore), the PTI failed to invade Rawalpindi, she said.

Recalling the party’s rowdy protests in the past, she said, “Whenever they come out on roads, they aim to disrupt the peaceful atmosphere of the country.”

“They (PTI leaders) sometimes write to the IMF not to extend the loan facility to Pakistan. At others they join hands with Israel to table a resolution [in the US Congress],” the minister said.

Regretting that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur was allocating more energies and resources for organising PTI protests in Punjab than improving conditions in his own province, she said the situation is very alarming in KP, where kidnappings are rampant and the Tehreek Taliban Pakistan is setting properties ablaze, educational institutions are being closed, and the province’s debt has skyrocketed to Rs630 billion.

Ms Bokhari urged Mr Gandapur to stop playing the role of a “second-rate Maula Jatt” and instead focus on the welfare of the people in his province.

Asking why the PTI did not protest in KP and save provincial resources, she warned that Mr Gandapur should act responsibly as none would be allowed hooliganism in Punjab and the PTI activists who violated imposition of Section 144 in Rawalpindi would be dealt with strictly.

She said that Mr Gandapur talked about firing bullets in Punjab.

“I want to tell him that bullets are already being fired in KP, where the Taliban roam freely. In his hometown DI Khan, the son of a DSP was kidnapped and killed, and TTP members are setting properties on fire; yet no one is held accountable as the KP chief minister has never called a meeting on law and order.”

The Punjab information minister also lamented that a judge provided full protocol to a sister of the PTI founder to join a protest in Rawalpindi.

“Aleema Khan told the judge that she wanted to participate in the protests. She was escorted to the venue with full protocol. Their facilitators should realize that these people use human rights and democracy as a cover for terrorism. From the attack on Parliament to May 9, whenever they’ve had the opportunity, they’ve resorted to terrorism.”

About the murder of Punjabis in Balochistan, she said that the blood of Punjabis is not cheap. “Whenever someone from another province comes to Punjab, we welcome and protect them with open arms. Sadly, terrorism has increased in Balochistan. Together, we will defeat the conspiracy to pitch Punjabis and Balochis against each other.”

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2024