SHANGLA: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s leadership here has claimed that its application for holding a workers’ convention has been turned down by the district administration.

It also insisted that the administration had refused to allow the party to organise such an event anywhere in the district.

PTI district president Liaquat Ali Yousafzai and party leader Nawaz Mehmood Khan told reporters on Tuesday that the deputy commissioner rejected their Dec 5 application for holding a workers convention citing “security issues” as the reason.

They said the party had planned two such events for Dec 12 and Dec 18 with the likelihood of PTI senior vice- president Sher Afzal Marwat showing up to address them.

DC cites security issues as reason for application’s rejection

Mr Khan said Shangla district remained peaceful even when Malakand division was hit by insurgency, so the denying permission to his party to carry out political activities in the run-up to general elections was an act of pre-poll rigging.

He said PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari recently addressed a public meeting in the district and got a “complete security cover” from the government, while the ANP freely held a rally two week ago but the restrictions were imposed on the PTI’s activities.

“We [PTI] will hold workers conventions at all costs as doing so is our constitutional right,” he said.

Mr Yousafzai said the workers’ conventions were planned to launch the PTI’s election campaign like other parties.

He said the Election Commission of Pakistan had failed to provide his party with a level playing field for participating in the upcoming elections.

The PTI resented an ongoing crackdown on the PTI.

He said the people wanted free and fair elections in the country and would accept results if the electoral exercise was held fairly.

Mr Yousafzai said only one case of riots was reported in the district on May 9 and afterwards, so the crackdown on the PTI was beyond understanding.

He demanded of the Supreme Court and Peshawar High Court to ensure that his party freely carries out activities in the run-up to the Feb 8 general elections.

UNDERAGE DRIVERS: Underage drivers and transporters overcharging commuters were fined here on Tuesday.

The action was taken by the administration during a campaign carried out with the collaboration of traffic police, according to an official statement.

Assistant commissioner of Chakesar tehsil Mohammad Hamid Siddiqui led the crackdown.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2023