LAHORE: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has demanded that the case of 100 deaths in the Peshawar Police Lines mosque blast should be registered against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan.

“The judiciary should investigate the Peshawar tragedy and take action against Imran [for allowing the return of militants from Afghanistan and letting them resettle in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the PTI tenure in power],” demanded PPP Lahore chapter president Chaudhry Aslam Gill here on Wednesday.

“Imran should be immediately arrested and brought in the dock after instituting a case against him for the murder of 100 innocent people in Peshawar mosque,” he said while speaking at a demonstration held here on The Mall to show solidarity with former president Asif Ali Zardari, who was accused by Mr Khan of hatching a plot to kill him.

Both male and female workers of the PPP, carrying party flags, participated in the demonstration and raised slogans against former premier Imran Khan for leveling “false allegations” against Mr Zardari. They also set ablaze an effigy of the PTI chief.

Mr Gill said he could not believe that a Muslim could attack any mosque and said that the Taliban militants were cursed and anti-Pakistan elements.

He said the PPP was standing with the state institutions responsible for the national security and wished an end to terrorism to save the country.

He said Imran was a friend of the Taliban and had allowed the militants to resettle here and was thus responsible for the chaos and terrorism in the country.

Prominent among the demonstrators were Faisal Mir, Faiza Malik, Sonia Khan, Aziz Malik, Zahid Zulfiqar, Sadaqat Sherwani and Nargis Khan.Meanwhile, PPP Central Punjab Secretary General Syed Hasan Murtaza has said former president Zardari had gotten on the nerves of the PTI.

In a statement issued here, he said Mr Zardari ousted Imran Niazi from power by using a democratic way, through a no-confidence move.

After failing to politically face Asif Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto, Imran Khan was following the strategy of spreading lies, hatred and fear, he added.

He also said both Mr Zardari and Mr Bilawal had always shown patience and tolerance against their political opponents.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2023