ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) on Saturday submitted a written response in the Supreme Court over a set of identical petitions filed by bar associations across the country against the PAT and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf's (PTI) sit-ins on Islamabad's Constitution Avenue.
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The written reply, which was submitted by PAT counsel Advocate Ali Zafar, stated that the court should not interfere in political matters as it would face the risk of losing its reputation.
The response moreover said that the PAT was a peaceful party and that it had never engaged in violence nor did it have any intentions of doing so.
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Holding sit-ins was the right of the party and it was an internationally established right, the response said.
The reply also said that the party was protesting the killings of its workers who were killed in a clash with the Punjab police on June 17. The court had also ordered registration of cases against 21 others, including Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, but the police had not implemented the orders.
The PAT had failed to submit a written response during the hearing of the case on Aug 22, following which the apex court had ordered Advocate Zafar to submit a concise statement before the next hearing of the case on August 25.
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— With additional reporting by Abdul Shakoor Khan