TOBA TEK SINGH: A province-wide crackdown on Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) activists continued on Friday night and Saturday.

Several activists were rounded up for protesting against the government in Faisalabad, Muzaffargarh, Kot Addu, Layyah and Okara.

In Faisalabad, police filed cases against 75 PTI activists for holding a protest at Saleemi Chowk on Satiana Road. Five PTI workers were nominated in the FIR, while the rest are unidentified.

According to the complainant, Inspector Shaukat Ali, Bilal Gujjar, Kashif Mahmood, Faryad Ali, Ali Sher Kamoka and Rana Fayaz led a rally of about 70 people. They blocked traffic, damaged private vehicles and threw stones at policemen while chanting slogans against the government. The police resorted to tear gas to disperse the crowd, after which the protesters fled.

MUZAFFARGARH: PTI MPA Nadia Farooq Khar was arrested on Friday night during a protest at Qureshi Chowk.

Claiming to be protesting peacefully, Ms Khar was detained and transferred to Dera Ghazi Khan jail.

Meanwhile, the Muzaffargarh city police registered cases against more than a dozen lawyers, along with 26 unidentified participants, for violating Section 144 while protesting.

The local District Bar Association (DBA) had already been on strike over the detention of DBA President Shafiq Malana, who was jailed for 30 days. The government, however, caved in to lawyers’ pressure and on Saturday, Malana was released after the district administration withdrew his detention orders following court directives.

In Layyah district, around 30 protesters were booked for staging a demonstration against the government. The protestors were charged with defying Section 144, and raids are underway to apprehend those involved.

OKARA: The police arrested seven PTI activists for violating Section 144 and staging a protest against the Punjab government on Friday night.

According to the first information report, filed by SHO Muhammad Riaz Bhatti, the protest was led by PTI provincial assembly ticket holder Rai Hammad Aslam Kharal.

A Saddar patrolling police team received reports that around 30-35 PTI workers, carrying party flags and placards, had blocked Okara-Faisalabad Road near Satgrah Mor, about 2km north of the city.

The protesters were chanting slogans against the Punjab government and demanding the release of Imran Khan.

Despite being warned by the police to disperse and clear the road due to the enforcement of Section 144 across the district, the protesters refused to comply.

Reinforcements were called in, and the police were able to disperse the protest. Seven activists were arrested, including Rai Kharal, Nasir Abbas, Nabil Raza Majhiana, Ihtisham Aslam, Syed Yousaf Raza and Imtiaz, while the rest of the group managed to escape.

Another PTI group, led by Chaudhry Saleem Sadiq and Mahr Javid Iqbal, also violated Section 144 during the protest but evaded arrest upon the arrival of the police.

The arrested workers were charged under Section 188 of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 16 of The Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960. However, they were presented before Duty Magistrate Shahid Fatyana, who discharged them from the case, and all were released on the spot.

Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2024