LAHORE: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leaders yet again showed courage and held workers conventions in Lahore and Sahiwal on Sunday in the face of continuous police raids, registration of cases, harassment and denial of basic human rights by the Punjab government.

The Sialkot police, however, did not let the PTI leaders and workers come out of their homes to hold the scheduled convention. However, in Lahore and other cities, a large number of people, including women, carrying party flags participated in the conventions on Saturday night and Sunday.

Some PTI leaders told Dawn that the workers had created a much-awaited environment in the province and stressed that senior leadership and party diehards should not halt the workers conventions, peaceful protests and rallies until the release of Imran Khan from jail.

“Punjab is awake now,” a party worker declared.

Raids, cases unable to keep workers away; leaders remain virtual

After a brief appearance at PTI central secretariat in Islamabad on May 23, PTI Punjab general secretary Hammad Azhar reappeared at a workers’ convention in Hafizabad on Saturday night and addressed the Lahore and Sahiwal conventions on Sunday online. In his speech, Mr Azhar said the ‘mean people’ were keeping the party’s founder in an 8x10 death cell.

Since police remained on their toes and reached every convention venue, the PTI leaders at the eleventh hour changed their Mochi Gate convention venue to another place. A large number of workers attended the convention, addressed by Hammad Azhar online.

“The party, in the face of state fascism, will organise conventions in every district and constituency of the province in the days to come,” he announced and said that the party’s struggle and objective was to maintain the rule of law. Despite all fascist tactics, the party workers had managed to hold conventions as per their constitutional rights.

“Our struggle is entering the final round and soon our leader Imran Khan will be free and undemocratic forces will fail,” he said,

During Azhar’s address, a heavy contingent of police surrounded the convention venue, arrested 18 workers and took control of the property.

The Hafizabad police on Sunday booked Azhar and over 40 other party leaders and workers on charges of anti-government and anti-state speeches, protecting proclaimed offenders and unlawful assembly armed with deadly weapons likely to cause death.

PTI Punjab information secretary Shaukat Basra told Dawn the latest FIR was 53rd against Mr Azhar.

He said the ‘Form-47 TikTok government’ had become so weak that it was getting sleepless nights even after the announcement of workers’ conventions. He said the police had been let loose to pounce on the party leaders, unleashing the state fascism. He lamented that the police were arresting peaceful workers and registering terrorism cases against them. He alleged the police raided and arrested leaders and workers from their houses a day before the scheduled conventions. He said the police did not spare even those holding conventions within the four walls of their outhouses in different cities.

Mr Basra said the government was crying hoarse that the PTI and Imran Khan had vanished from the political scene but remained so afraid that it was not even allowing peaceful workers’ conventions.

“The forcibly imposed rulers are clearly afraid and have mentally accepted their defeat,” he said, adding that this government’s days were numbered.

Posting videos of conventions in different cities on social media, the party leaders said the masses had defied police action to exercise their right to protest against the ‘fake government’ based on Form-47.

PTI leader Meher Bano Qureshi tweeted, “Now you know why they hide behind frivolous and lame excuses to deny us our constitutional right to assemble”. Lauding the PTI Punjab for its “superb effort”, she stated, “The PTI has come out in Sahiwal despite CM Sahiba’s enduring crackdown, arrests and harassment of our workers”.

The PTI had been requesting the respective districts’ deputy commissioners and even got court orders but denied holding the workers’ conventions.

In Hafizabad, party MNA Shaukat Bhatti and MPA Ansar Bhatti had organised the workers’ convention within the four walls of their outhouse but the police arrested the workers and smashed household items. The police also raided the houses of leaders in Lahore, including Lahore senior vice-president and ticket-holder Abdul Karim, and took them into custody.

Lauding the party workers for holding conventions in Hafizabad and Khanewal, PTI secretary general Omar Ayub Khan said more conventions would be held in the coming week.

Asserting that “Punjab is active”, Omar Ayub said he was awaiting the signal from Imran Khan to launch a country-wide movement. “We and our allies are ready,” he added.

Published in Dawn, June 10th, 2024