KHYBER: A protest demonstration by the PTI workers in Bara tehsil here on Tuesday turned violent when the participants torched government buildings and clashed with riot police.
Five demonstrators were injured in police firing.
Scores of PTI workers assembled at the Khyber Chowk in Bara Bazaar in the afternoon to protest the imposition of the governor’s rule in the province and emergency in selected districts, prompting a contingent of police to arrive.
As the PTI workers insisted on holding the demonstration, the police resorted to a baton charge and tear gas shelling to disperse them.
Protesters torch Nadra and Rescue 1122 buildings; information adviser Samar says order restored in Khyber area
Some protesters dispersed but as local MPA Abdul Ghani Afridi and his supporters showed up, the mob took control of the Khyber Chowk. It forced the riot police to retreat, with some personnel taking shelter in nearby shops and other commercial buildings.
Policemen fired tear gas shells and gunshots in the air when protesters manhandled them and dragged them out of shops.
Sources said that angry protesters torched the nearby Nadra office and a portion of the Rescue 1122 building. At least five PTI workers were injured during a scuffle with police and during the firing in the air. The PTI leaders accused the police of directly firing at the protesters.
However, police denied the allegation.
The injured PTI workers were rushed to a local hospital where their condition was declared out of danger.
Local sources said in the evening that police dislodged the protesters from Khyber Chowk and chased them up to Alamgudar, around two kilometres from main Bara Bazaar.
They said with police taking control of the Bara Bazaar and surrounding areas, all roads leading to the bazaar were closed, while the situation remained tense despite the apparent ending of the protest.
Meanwhile, leaders of the Bara Siyasi Ittehad urged both PTI workers and police to avoid violent confrontation.
APP adds: Police arrested 42 people over vandalism and unrest at Bara Chowk.
They included 25 Afghan nationals reportedly living in the country illegally, according to adviser on information to the KP Advisory Council Samar Haroon Bilour.
In a statement, she said police took timely action to control the situation and restore order in the area.
She said the mob damaged public and government property.
The adviser said some individuals allegedly led by Abdul Ghani Afridi, Iqbal Afridi and Shahid Khattak attempted to create unrest at Bara Chowk.
She added that police made arrests over the incident and brought the situation under control.
However, the number of arrests, the extent of the damage and the nationality and immigration status of those detained could not be independently verified.
Authorities said they would continue legal action against those involved in vandalism, disturbing public order and challenging the writ of the state.
In another statement, Ms Bilour voiced concern over a message attributed to the banned terrorist outfits in support of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.
She questioned why an internationally recognised banned terrorist organisation was so concerned about the ouster of the PTI government that it was issuing statements against the constitutional change.
“Isn’t it alarming that an internationally recognised and defunct terrorist organisation is so worried about the ouster of the PTI government that it is issuing statements against the constitutional change? It looks like they’re quite comfortable during the previous government’s time,” she said.
Published in Dawn, October 14th, 2026
