RAWALPINDI: The PPP has asked party workers to ensure their presence at the hearing of the Benazir Bhutto murder trial at the Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi bench on Wednesday, as a show of the party’s strength among the public.

A senior PPP leader told Dawn that Gen Pervez Musharraf’s allegations against co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari provoked party workers, and so the party activated old workers to cash in on the wave of sympathy for the party leadership.

He said most of the party’s older workers in the twin cities were displeased with the party leadership, which ignored them for the last nine years and now wanted to activate them a year before the upcoming general election.

He added Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met with some workers last month, but most were not invited.

However, the party leader said, after Mr Musharraf’s allegations the workers wanted to probe Bhutto’s assassination and show the people the real culprits.

He said teams have been formed to bring party workers to the LHC, but they have been asked to remain outside the courts to avoid any untoward situation.

When contacted, PPP City President Babar Jadoon said PPP Secretary General Nayyar Hussain Bukhari has asked all office bearers to come to the LHC for the hearing.

He said the party has not made any arrangements to bring workers to the court, but they would come on their own. He said this was a tradition for the PPP, as workers also accompanied Bhutto when she appeared before the court.

Mr Jadoon said PPP workers were angered by Mr Musharraf’s false allegations against Mr Zardari, and wanted to be at the LHC to show that they wanted justice.

“It is not an attempt to pressurise the judiciary but show the people that it was public case and they want justice, and make [accountable those] who hatched a conspiracy against democracy and the country while assassinating former prime minister Benazir Bhutto,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 27th, 2017