LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Thursday disposed of a petition of a Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) worker challenging the imposition of the section 144 in the provincial metropolis and seeking a permission to take out a rally.

At the outset of the hearing, Justice Muhammad Waheed Khan observed that the PTI had already called off its rally, which it was taking out without permission by the city administration.

The petitioner’s counsel stated that the deputy commissioner had not decided on an application wherein permission was sought to take out the rally.

The judge asked the counsel as to how the rally was conducted without an approval by the deputy commissioner.

The judge observed that the petitioner should have filed a petition against the deputy commissioner for not deciding the application.

The counsel said the police launched a crackdown on the PTI workers and turned the Zaman Park area into a battlefield.

Justice Khan cautioned the counsel against raising issues other than those mentioned in the petition.

“This is a court, not a stage of a public meeting,” the judge reminded the lawyer.

The judge noted that the petition revealed that the petitioner had shared the application with the DC. “Was sharing the application enough?” the judge said.

As the counsel sought permission to withdraw the petition, the judge disposed of the petition as withdrawn.

Meanwhile, Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh also disposed of another petition filed by PTI leader Hammad Azhar against the imposition of section 144.

Advocate General of Punjab Shan Gul appeared before the court and stated that the government had withdrawn the notification regarding the imposition of the section 144.

At this, the judge disposed of the petition for being infructuous.

Published in Dawn, March 10th, 2023