ISLAMABAD/RAWALPINDI: As the crowds at the ongoing sit-ins on Constitution Avenue continue to dwindle and swell and more supporters take to the streets for Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) sit-ins in Lahore and Karachi, the supporters of the ruling party Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have decided to take countermeasures to show their own strength, albeit with limited success.

According to a PML-N leader, the three rallies that the party held in the garrison city on Sunday only managed to gather around a hundred participants each.

Know more: PML-N and JUI-F rallies against PTI, PAT

A considerably larger rally of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supporters was held at Aabpara Chowk in Islamabad, where the speakers condemned Imran Khan and Dr Tahirul Qadri for demanding the prime minister’s resignation.

l Ruling party’s rallies in Pindi fail to attract crowds, women participants l Unruly workers mob party leader’s truck l Special Branch monitoring performance of pro-govt rallies

However, unlike PAT and PTI rallies, the ruling party still came out short in terms of sheer numbers, as well as women’s turnout.

Gender imbalance

One of the most integral parts of the protest sit-ins by PTI and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) was the participation of women and children from all backgrounds.

The parties proved their claim of enjoying a strong support from people of both genders and different backgrounds. This was one strong element that lacked tremendously in the PML-N rally.

Meanwhile, almost all speakers condemned PTI over their so-called “singing and dancing” and the participation of “modern ladies” at the D-Chowk sit-in.

PML-N General Secretary Sajid Abbasi told Dawn, “I agree that there is no participation of the women in today’s show. We did not invite them as it becomes hard to manage a huge gathering. We are organising this event on a short notice.”

He went on to claim that his party enjoys the support of thousands of women in the federal capital.

Unruly demonstrators

Contrary to the PTI and PAT rallies – that seem to be peaceful and disciplined so far – the organisers of the PML-N event failed to maintain decorum.

Dozens of supporters rushed towards Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry’s truck to get photographs taken, despite the party leader’s repeated warning that his truck is overloaded.

“Our workers should behave maturely, everyone wants to embark on the truck for a photo session,” said Gulzar Ahmed, who had come from Bari Imam.

Anti-PTI sentiment

Dr Chaudhry stated in his speech that seeking resignation from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and calling for civil disobedience was an unconstitutional demand by PTI, which, according to him, had been rejected by the nation.

“There is no weight in Imran Khan’s allegations regarding poll rigging. He has no solid evidence to establish his claims,” Dr Chaudhry, adding that the elections were held in a free and transparent manner. He said that if Imran Khan wants to become the prime minister of Pakistan, he will have to follow the method laid down in the Constitution. He also accused PTI of ignoring Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and “wasting” their resources on false allegations of electoral rigging.

Ajmal Baloch, a traders’ leader, claimed during his speech that the citizens of Islamabad and the traders have been waiting for the permission from the party leadership to get the D-Chowk vacated from the protesters. He said that the ongoing protests have dampened the business activity in the city.

Low attendance

The ruling party brought out three rallies in Rawalpindi on Sunday, from different parts of the city.

A rally from Kalar Syedian to T-Chowk was brought out by party workers on 40 motorcycles. The participants stopped the traffic between Islamabad and Rawalpindi for more than an hour and chanted slogans against Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri.

Another rally of about 150 PML-N workers came out at Sadiqabad, in which the participants were holding placards and banners while chanting in favour of the prime minister.The third rally was brought from Committee Chowk till Chandni Chowk. The rally stopped the traffic at Murree road, which is already congested due to the Metro Bus Project construction.

Security measures

After witnessing a weak response from the participants in the rally, PML-N asked its local leaders to bring out at least 300 people from each constituency and joined the main ‘Isteqam-i-Pakistan’ rally which will be led by Punjab Labour Minister Ashfaq Sarwar on Monday, from Faizabad to Zero Point. The attendance at the rally will be monitored by the law enforcement agencies.

“The Special Branch has been assigned the duty to keep a check on the number of participants and inform about the performance of the local party leaders and the number of people they bring along,” said a senior PML-N leader, while talking to Dawn, and added that three PML-N rallies came out on Sunday but only gathered around a 100 people in each.

He said that the Special Branch of police has been asked to take picture and report the attendance at the rallies to some senior workers in Rawalpindi.

PML-N City President Sardar Naseem said that the party workers brought three rallies on Sunday, but the main rally will be organised by the party on Monday from Rawalpindi to Islamabad.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2014