PESHAWAR, April 6: The provincial council of Pakistan People’s Party is meeting on April 10 at Zar Bagh Pabbi to finalize the programme of welcoming Asif Ali Zardari. Provincial information secretary Syed Ayub Shah said in a statement on Wednesday the party would give Mr Zardari a rousing welcome on his arrival in Lahore on April 16. Provincial information secretary Syed Ayub Shah said a procession of PPP workers from all over the province would leave for Lahore on April 16.

He said PPP district presidents, general secretaries and office-bearers of sister organization had been invited to the council meeting at Zar Bagh on Sunday.

The NWFP PPP president, Rahimdad Khan, condemned massive arrests of political activists in various cities during the wheel-jam strike on March 31.

He said the government of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal itself was organizing ant-Musharraf strikes and rallies, but it had been attacking activists of other political parties for doing so.

The PPP leader criticized registration of cases against political workers under the ATA and termed it a wrong precedence being set by the MMA against the political forces.

He demanded that the NWFP government withdrew all cases against political activists and released them immediately.