MULTAN: Police lodged a case on Thursday against more than 60 PML-N activists, including district president, general secretary, for allegedly storming the main gate of the residence of PTI Vice-Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi and rioting there while brandishing weapons.

An FIR into the incident includes sections 146 (Rioting), 148 (Rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object) and 7-Anti-Terror-Act. The Daulat Gate police registered the report on the complaint of Qureshi’s personal secretary Muhammad Iqbal.

The FIR was lodged against 50 unidentified and 17 nominated people. Among the nominated suspects include PML-N District President Bilal Butt, General-Secretary Athar Mumtaz, additional secretaries Munir Akhtar Langah and Zafar Qadri, senior vice-president Shahid Mukhtar Lodhi, Muslim League Youth Wing President Tariq Ameer Abbasi, PML-N Traders President Abdul Ghaffar Awan, Hafeez Joya, Mutiul Hasan Bukhari, Sarwat Khan, Maqsooda Begum, Hamza Lodhi and Ejaz Fakhar.

Sources said the house was attacked with the backing of two senior police officers. PML-N’s Mumtaz rejected the allegation and said they were political workers and did not believe in violence.

Police did not arrest anyone while Mr Mumtaz said the nominated people had decided to present themselves before the police on Friday (today). But this is going to be ceremonial as soon after arrest, they will be released on bail.

Daulat Gate SHO Zulfiqar said though the FIR had been registered, no arrest was made as after the inclusion of terror charges, only an officer could investigate the case. He said as there no inspector in the police station, the case had been forwarded to the investigation branch.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2014