TAXILA: The year-long cracks between Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) local chapters were exposed on Thursday as three persons received bullet injuries after they clashed over setting up of two separate protest camps at the same venue on G.T. Road near Margalla in Taxila.

Two groups have emerged in the local chapter of the PTI, one led by former federal minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan and the other by Punjab minister for sports Taimour Masood Akbar. However, the groups have denied any divisions in their ranks.

Ghulam Sarwar Khan’s supporters objected to the setting of a protest camp near Margalla hills by the supporters of minister Taimour Masood as the constituency falls in the former’s constituency.

A brawl erupted between the two groups on Wednesday evening when the Masood group stopped a local PTI leader belonging to the Sarwar Khan group from going towards his house in his car. However, the dispute was settled after party leaders from Rawalpindi intervened. Both the groups again clashed on Thursday in which three supporters of Sarwar Khan group received bullet injuries.

Taxila Police on the complaint of injured Mohsin registered a case against the provincial minister, his younger brother Fahad Masood, Ihtisham Iqbal, Sajjad Butt, members Cantonment Board Wah, and nine other unidentified people. No arrest was made till filing of this report.

On the other hand, the minister has rejected the allegations and ruled out his party workers’ presence at the time of the incident and termed his implication in the case baseless.

Published in Dawn, November 11th, 2022