Key points
"2020 is far away. I see elections in 2019," JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said while talking to media after his meeting with PML-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi.
Read more here.
As Plan B of the JUI-F protests came into effect on Thursday, the Chaudhry brothers of Gujrat swung into action again, lauding Maulana Fazlur Rehman for having emerged as the "genuine leader of the opposition".
PML-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi met the JUI-F chief at the residence of the JUI-F’s Senator Talha Mehmood, but neither side divulged the agenda of the meeting.
Rehman said there was no scheduled agenda of the meeting and both sides had gathered at Mehmood's residence as he had invited them.
"During the Azadi march, the Chaudhry brothers were trying to find out a solution. We have been meeting in the past too and our demand for resignation of the government remains undeterred, while their stance too has not changed," the JUI-F chief said.
He reiterated his claim that the government was weakening and shaking.
"We are still in protest; we represent the sentiment of the people."
However, he praised the PML-Q leaders for their efforts to save democracy in Pakistan.
Read more here.
JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman says his party will not stop at blocking roads and highways across the country and will only end its protest after sending the "illegitimate" government home.
"We will go beyond than just blocking roads, and even further," Rehman said while talking to journalist Hamid Mir on Geo News.
He expressed the confidence that the protest will achieve some of its objectives "before the year's end".
JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman is chairing a meeting of local party leaders from Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
The meeting is being held at the Parliament Lodges.
The leaders are holding consultations of JUI-F's Plan-B, under which it has blocked major highways and roads across the country.
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) central leader Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri has asked the government to confront his party directly instead of "using institutions".
Addressing the participants of the sit-in at Islamabad's Motorway Chowk, Haideri said the JUI-F has no other option but to lock down the entire country.
"The Plan-B will send [Prime Minister] Imran Khan home," he claimed.
He said the government was unable to close down Attock bridge before the Azadi March but the JUI-F will block it tomorrow.
"Our fight is for the supremacy of the parliament and the Constitution," he stressed.
Workers of the JUI-F are staging a sit-in at Motorway Chowk in the capital as part of the party's 'Plan-B'.
— Photos courtesy of JUI-F
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) workers have blocked the highway connecting Karachi with Quetta at Khuzdar.
The party workers erected blockades at the zero point before holding a protest sit-in. JUI-F leader Maulana Qamaruddin is heading the sit-in.
A large number of vehicles have lined up on both sides of the sit-in.
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, after a meeting with PML-Q leaders, has reiterated that the party's demand for the resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan is intact and the protest will continue till the demand is met.
"Azadi March will continue, one congregation has ended and a large number of protests are being held," he said.
The JUI-F chief asked the provincial governments and district administrations to exercise caution and not to push the sit-ins towards violence. He said that the party was exercising its right to protest in a democratic way.
Addressing a press conference, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry says that they [the government] will tackle 'Plan B' of the JUI-F protests the same way that they had tackled 'Plan A'.
"Maulana sahib has left quite a lot of work for CDA," he said, referring to the Islamabad sit-in.
Chaudhry alleged that JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has a narrative of "extremism".
"The religious politics of the country have been damaged by this dharna [...] The narrative is one of the division of society," he said.
"Thank God it was unsuccessful," the minister said, adding that the JUI-F chief should learn a lesson from this.
The JUI-F is in a meeting with opposition parties in Balochistan. The party is expected to hold a press conference at 4pm.
In an alert issued by JUI-F's information department, if Hub Road is blocked, trains should not be stopped.
The notice said that if a road is blocked, ambulances and baraats should be permitted to pass through. People coming from overseas or going to the airport should be shown alternative routes.
Protesters were instructed to avoid using sticks. Additionally, shops should not be forcibly closed.
The alert said that party workers should be directed to avoid causing damage to public property and there should be announcements that people who are caught doing these "are not our people in fact they are miscreants who will handed over to the administration".
Additionally, briefings should be given on social media and workers should be updated with occasional video messages.
Addressing protesters at Shahra-e-Resham, secretary general of JUI-F Mansehra Maulana Nasir Mehmood says they will continue their protest until they get instructions from their party leadership to do otherwise.
Addressing the crowd, he said that they would continue their protest not for a day but a month if the leadership announced.
The JUI-F dharna is ongoing in Jacobabad for a second day.
Participants blocked a national highway at Zero Point. The flow of traffic has been suspended due to the dharna.
Close to Mansehra district, Shahra-e-Resham has been blocked at Chattar Plain in KP. Maulana Attaur Rehman is leading the protests.
The road is an important trade route that connects Pakistan to China and KP to Gilgit.
Chakdara Road in Malakand division has been blocked by protesters.
Workers from Chitral, Dir, Swat, Buner and other parts of the Malakand division gathered at Chakdara Chowk to block the main road, causing a large traffic jam.
Workers have started to arrive in Nowshera from Mardan, Charsadda and Peshawar. A road has been blocked in Hakimabad, where a large contingent of police is also present.
Additionally, JUI-F workers have closed Indus Highway in Bannu. A party worker said cars will only be allowed to pass through in the case of an emergency, adding that the road has been shut indefinitely.
A meeting of the Balochistan chapter of JUI-F has been called.
Provincial party chief Maulana Abdul Wasay, who will head the meeting, said in Balochistan roads are being closed in four places:
Following the decisions taken during the meeting, the roads will be closed, Wasay said.
JUI-F leader Qari Usman says that as per the party leadership's announcement, highways linking Karachi with Hub, Balochistan will be blocked after 2pm.
Maulana Umar Sadiq will lead the dharna in front of Jamiah Farooqia, Karachi.
A road leading from Sindh to Balochistan has been blocked at Zero Point as protestors gather and chant slogans of 'Go Niazi Go'.
As JUI-F wraps up its sit-in in Islamabad, premier's aide Firdous Ashiq Awan has said that she is "praying that God gives [Maulana Fazlur Rehman] the ability to make decisions that are connected with the country's betterment".
Speaking to reporters outside the Islamabad High Court, Awan said that Rehman brought his party workers to the capital as "fuel" to topple the government.
"As a political worker, we felt sad that a leader had used the wishes of innocent workers as fuel for his personal ambitions," she said.
"All of his [Maulana's] script were upturned," Awan remarked and went on to recite an Urdu verse to further her point: "Barey be-abroo ho kay terey koochey se ham nikley."
She said that the JUI-F's 'Plan B' will "be a flop just like the first episode" of the protest.
JUI-F announced the closure of major roads across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa today.
The party's media cell on Wednesday said that the roads would be closed as part of 'Plan-B' of the protests.
The road blocked announced by the party in the province are:
The party urged workers to remain peaceful and give way to patients commuting.
"Maybe Wednesday’s announcement of the JUI-F’s new map will still be looked upon as a face-saving exercise by many. The problem is, what if the maulana really means it?," asks Dawn's editorial in today's paper.
"He has already shown that he accepts and rejects advice at his own convenience and has sufficiently exhibited a mind free from any reasonable limits for anyone to take him and his Plan B lightly. His protest may be entering an extremely sensitive area and the JUI-F chief could find himself in a corner with no escape.
The plan, if carried out, could have devastating effects on daily life.
"The JUI-F threatens to expand the measures to paralyse all manner of movement on the national road network, and the plan, if carried out, could have devastating effects on daily life."
Read the full editorial here.
PPP, which has so far supported JUI-F's protest, declares that it will not allow the right-wing party to expand its protests into PPP-ruled Sindh.
JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman called off the party’s 13-day sit-in in Islamabad on Wednesday and announced that his party’s anti-government movement would continue across the country.
In Karachi, Sindh Information Minister Saeed Ghani was asked about the proposed plan of blockades of roads and highways by the JUI-F.
"It can never be allowed," he said.
"If any individual or group plans to take to the streets, blocks the roads, puts hurdles to people’s life and challenge the writ of the government, it’s not going to happen. We don’t want anyone to disturb common man’s life and it’s the prime duty of the government to keep regular business normal with all due security and protection."
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JUI-F provincial emir Agha Syed Mahmood Shah says the Quetta-Chaman road will be "completely closed" starting 2pm tomorrow as part of the party's 'Plan-B'.
Party workers will also block the Iran-Taftan road while the road connecting Karachi to Balochistan will be blocked at Khuzadar and the Punjab-Balochistan road link will be shut at the Dera Ghazi Khan boundary.
As part of the JUI-F's 'Plan-B', the party's workers will block the road connecting Punjab with Sindh at Kot Sabzal in Rahim Yar Khan at 2pm tomorrow.
According to the party's Punjab emir Maulana Safiullah, the Indus Highway in Dera Ghazi Khan will also be shut off.
In Rawalpindi, sit-ins will be staged to block two entry points from Islamabad.
Workers of the JUI-F are packing up their belongings after the Azadi March dharna in Islamabad was called off by their party leadership.
The workers have been directed to proceed to other cities as the JUI-F's 'Plan-B' goes into effect tomorrow.
JUI-F and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) workers have ended their blockade of a road in the Syed Hameed Cross area of Qilla Abdullah district near Chaman.
The workers decided to call off their protest after negotiations with the district administration. However, they are expected to return tomorrow as the JUI-F's 'Plan-B' goes into effect.
JUI-F provincial chief Maulana Attaur Rehman has announced that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will be disconnected with other parts of the country by 2pm tomorrow.
He said that the Indus Highway, the Peshawar to Lahore motorway, the Karakoram Highway and highways leading to other parts of the province will be blocked.
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) leader Maulana Rashid Mahmood Soomro, while explaining the strategy to disconnect Sindh with other parts of the country under the party's 'Plan-B', says that the Karachi-Balochistan gateway will be blocked at Hub River road. Party workers from Karachi have been tasked with blocking the road.
Similarly, another Sindh-Balochistan highway will be blocked at Jacobabad by party activists from Larkana and other neighbouring districts.
The Sindh-Punjab link will be broken at Ghotki by party workers from Sukkur, Pano Akil, Shikarpur and adjoining areas. The Multan-Sukkur motorway will be blocked at Sukkur, he said.
JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman says his party's anti-government movement has transformed the JUI-F into a "big (political) party".
"We are called a small party in the parliament but your movement has transformed you into a big party," he said while addressing participants of the Azadi March sit-in.
He said the protesters have become the "axis of the Pakistani politics".
"The country's politics is revolving around the movement and the illegitimate rulers in the parliament and their stooges are in a state of fear.
"Democratic norms and supremacy of the Constitution had become dilapidated in the country and had been a target of the dictatorial mindset, but you have defeated [that] mindset and safeguarded the Constitution and democracy in the country," he told party workers.
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has announced an end to the Azadi March sit-in which has been underway for 13 days in Islamabad.
Instead, the party will expand its anti-government protest all over the country starting tomorrow.
The JUI-F chief reiterated his demand for the resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan and said that the movement will continue until he steps down.
JUI-F leader Maulana Attaur Rehman, while explaining the 'Plan-B' of the party's Azadi March, has announced that not only major arteries but roads and streets of the country will also be blocked starting 2pm on Thursday.
He said that the GT Road between Peshawar and Rawalpindi will be blocked tomorrow. He added that the National Highway in Sindh, the Quetta-Chaman road in Balochistan, the Silk Road in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Indus Highway in Punjab have already been blocked.
Rashid Soomro, another leader of the JUI-F, asked party workers to block Hub River road in Karachi by 2pm tomorrow. He directed the workers to provide passage to ambulances during the blockades and not to hold sticks in their hands.
The JUI-F is likely to call off its Azadi March sit-in in Islamabad by tonight and spread its anti-government protest across the country, party sources say.
JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman is expected to make an announcement in this regard in the evening.
Scores of workers of the JUI-F are staging a sit-in at Zero Point in Jacobabad.
The participants of the sit-in have arrived from Larkana, Shikarpur and other areas of Sindh.
The protest is being led by Siraj Ahmed Shah.
A consultative meeting of JUI-F is underway at party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman's residence, sources said.
Headed by the JUI-F, various party leaders including Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, Maulana Attaur Rahman and Mohammad Aslam Ghauri are participating in the meeting.
The party will look at its strategy regarding 'Plan-B' of the protest and will review the roads that have been closed, the sources said, adding that they will also discuss starting the implementation of 'Plan-B' in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from tomorrow.
The Azadi March sit-in and the country's political situation will also be discussed.
JUI-F and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) workers have blocked a road at the Syed Hameed Cross area of Qilla Abdullah district near Chaman.
Blocking major highways is part of 'Plan-B' of the JUI-F protest, which is currently staging a sit-in in Islamabad.
Pictures from the scene show the participants holding party flags as they stood in the middle of the road.
According to Geo, participants of the JUI-F sit-in have complained of inadequate hygiene facilities at the sit-in venue.
The report said that according to participants there are not enough toilets and sufficient water supply at the dharna site, which they said is leading to diseases.
"We are determined to stay until our leader asks us to be here. Such things will have no impact on our dharna," Geo quoted the participants as saying.
"Yes, the hygiene issues are irritating. We have people deputed to clean the place and Ansar-ul-Islam also joins them. We are not like the participants of 2014 ‘dharna’," Ubaid Ullah, a participant from Balochistan, was quoted as saying.
Read the full story here.
The Deputy Inspector General of Police, South Zone, Karachi, Sharjil Kharal, has written a letter to the senior superintendents of police for the City and South districts of the metropolis alerting them of JUI-F's 'Plan-B' for their protest expected in Karachi.
In a letter dated November 11, the DIG said that according to a credible source, JUI-F will gather at various locations in Karachi and stage a sit-in for an "indefinite period to disturb the [peaceful] atmosphere of the city and to provide [economic] loss to the government".
The locations identified by the DIG are:
In his letter, the DIG added that students of Madaris and local workers would be part of the sit-in and would bring tents and other items with them for a long stay.
"Please keep strict surveillance and adopt all precautionary measures to pre-empt any untoward incident," he told the SSPs.
A police source told Dawn that this is a precautionary measure, adding that there were different phases in the JUI-F's plan to block highways linking the provinces. The sources said that the fourth phase would probably be blocking the Karachi-Hub road. They added that the first phase is starting from Jacobabad today.
The news of JUI-F's 'Plan-B' is also trending on Twitter today as '#PlanB_ComingSoon'.
JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman has asked workers of his party to come out of their homes to execute 'Plan-B' of the anti-government Azadi March, which involved blocking major highways and trade links across the country.
"This movement will be given so much strength that it will not be possible for this government to stay in place," he told the sit-in participants.
But he reminded party workers not to "take the law into your hands" and "save yourself from clash".
A meeting of the JUI-F chaired by Fazlur Rehman today gave "final shape" to the party's 'Plan-B' of the anti-government Azadi March, sources say.
During the meeting, the emirs of JUI-F's four provincial chapters gave a briefing regarding their preparations to implement the party's Plan-B, which includes blocking major highways and trade links across the country.
According to party sources, Rehman expressed satisfaction on the preparations of the provincial chapters regarding executing the plan.
Deliberations were held regarding blocking major roads in all four provinces and staging a lockdown at important spots in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, the sources added.
The decisions taken during the meeting today will be announced by Rehman at the sit-in site, his spokesperson said.
An important meeting of the JUI-F will be held today.
According to sources, the future of the protest will be decided during the meeting and consultations regarding the plan-B will be held.
JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman says that they are further increasing the pressure on the government and will continue to do so.
He said that JUI-F was currently consulting all parties, adding that the whole country is on the same page.
"We will continue our struggle till we are free from this illegitimate government," he said.
Residents of the capital complain about disruptions in daily life caused by the JUI-F-led sit-in, which continues without an end in sight.
"Our life is badly disrupted because of the closure of Kashmir Highway as the traffic load is shifted on small roads," said Mohammad Shah, a resident of G-10.
Contrary to the past when such protests were held at D-Chowk, the participants of JUI-F’s sit-in are camped on Kashmir Highway at H-9 and G-9 in the middle of the city.
This has resulted in the blockade of a portion of the highway which also leads to the Islamabad International Airport. Sector H-9 houses a large number of schools as well.
Read more here.
JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman has sought the opinion of provincial chapters regarding the party's 'Plan B' for the ongoing anti-government protest.
Rehman, who was chairing a meeting of party leaders, has directed the JUI-F provincial emirs to brief the party's central executive committee tomorrow regarding their preparations and resources to implement the Plan B, which includes blocking major highways, trade links and shutter down strikes.
The JUI-F chief has also sought details regarding "which road can be completely blocked in which province", a source in the party told DawnNewsTV.
Rehman also decided that the sit-in underway on Kashmir Highway will continue alongside the implementation of the party's Plan B, the source added.
