KARACHI: Workers and supporters of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf thronged main Rashid Minhas Road on Sunday evening to record their protest against a police raid on party chairman Imran Khan’s Lahore residence and against what they called fascism of the “imported government”.

Taking out rallies from different parts of the city, a large number of PTI workers and supporters, including women and children, converged near Millennium Mall on the call of the city chapter of the party.

Carrying party flags and chanting slogans, the protesters in cars, motorbikes and other mode of transport reached the venue of the protest, where many of them seen dancing to the tunes of party songs.

Several party leaders addressed the charged crowd and promised them that the momentum would continue till the fall of the Pakistan Democratic Mov­e­ment-led coalition rule.

They also asked Karachiites to be ready for the next call of the protest and vowed that the campaign against the recent political development would be expanded to other parts of Sindh.

Speaking on the occasion, PTI-Karachi president Aftab Siddiqi said that the people of the metropolis would always support their leader Imran Khan and stay firm with true democratic forces.

“One can see that Karachi has turned up in solidarity with their leader Imran Khan and they will be out in the street every time he would give a call,” he said.

He alleged that like the police in Punjab, the Sindh police had also launched a crackdown on the PTI, particularly in Karachi, and dozens of activists were still in their custody without any charge.

Khurram Sher Zaman, the PTI’s parliamentary party leader in the Sindh Assembly, said that the entire nation supported the principled stance of Imran Khan. “Traitors of Pakistan leading different political parties are exposed before the nation,” he said.

MPA Shahzad Qureshi said on the occasion that there was a spontaneous reaction from people across the city against police brutality in Lahore.

“People with their families came out of their homes and took to streets on their own and within no time we have witnessed a massive power show expressing solidarity with their beloved leader Imran Khan,” he said.

Published in Dawn, March 20th, 2023