ISLAMABAD: Banigala — the residence of former prime minister Imran Khan — remained a hotbed of political activity on Monday as hundreds of supporters answered the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief’s call, a day after he was booked by the government in a terrorism case.

The political drama was not just limited to Banigala, as protests in support of Mr Khan erupted across Pakistan, with people coming out in Lahore, Faisalabad, and Karachi among other cities, following rumours of Mr Khan’s imminent arrest.

In fact, the United States — a country Imran Khan blames for his removal from power — also witnessed an impromptu demonstration in Virginia, where a bridal party turned into a PTI corner meeting on the back of these rumours. The protest was prompted by the “social media reports” of Mr Khan’s arrest continued for an hour, amid slogans against the Pakistani government.

The seeds of a large gathering were sown on Sunday night when a large crowd gathered outside the residence of Imran Khan, amid speculations that a heavy contingent of Islamabad police was coming to detain the PTI chairman.

Throughout the night, a large number of party leaders and followers remained camped outside the hilltop residence. Videos shared on social media showed protesters chanting slogans in favour of the PTI chairman and vowing to resist any government’s move to arrest Mr Khan.

Besides the on-ground presence, PTI supporters also dominated online spaces as pro-Imran Khan hashtags, including ‘Imran Khan is our red line’ trended through the night into Monday morning.

However, by Monday afternoon, things had started to calm down; the heavy contingent of police was withdrawn and the PTI chief was granted bail by the high court. The Islamabad police also clarified that the personnel present outside the ex-PM’s residence were there to avert a possible “law and order situation” due to the presence of a large number of PTI supporters outside Mr Khan’s house, and had no designs on the former PM.

By Monday afternoon, only a couple of hundred party supporters were left in the surroundings of Imran Khan’s residence, staying on to “protect” him from the police and the government. Emotions ran high among the supporters of Mr Khan, who had gathered in small groups on the route leading to his house – performing duties as Mr Khan’s security staff and expressing support for their embattled leader.

They lacked discipline, however, and seemed to enjoy “their monopoly” as protectors of Imran Khan. One of the protesters said they had been “present outside Banigala since last night” and that they “would not let the police touch Imran Khan”.

By evening, there was no police contingent outside Mr Khan’s Ban­i­gala estate though; only a handful of policemen were present at the main check post on the road leading towards the residence of Imran Khan and they hardly bothered with stopping anyone.

The next checkpost, blocked by a barrier, was managed by supporters of Mr Khan, who were diligently performing their duties despite the sweltering heat. On both sides of the barrier, media personnel and party supporters, including women, were present.

No one was allowed to access Mr Khan’s residence – at least one km from this point – without the permission of these volunteers who had come to provide security to Mr Khan.

Those whose names had been communicated ‘from inside’ were allowed to pass through this barricade. But for Mr Khan’s supporters and most media personnel, the barrier was the end of the line.

Journalists who managed to reach the front gate of Mr Khan’s residence saw that at least a dozen supporters were there as well, chanting slogans against the “imported government” in chorus.

Photos circulating on social media showed that the leader had not limited himself to meeting political delegations within the confines of his home, but had also popped out to wave to his supporters who had gathered on the other side of the iron gate.

Anwar Iqbal in Washington also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2022