ISLAMABAD, April 14: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Saturday alleged that the government had arrested a large number of party workers and office-bearers during the last 24 hours to fail the public meeting to be held in Taxila on Sunday.

Speaking at a news conference, PML-N secretary general Iqbal Zafar Jhagra and information secretary Ahsan Iqbal said the police had launched a massive crackdown on Friday night in various areas, particularly in Rawalpindi and Taxila, and arrested a number of party activists and even impounded their vehicles.

Mr Jhagra said that dozens of party leaders and activists were detained in police stations in Taxila, Chauntra, Rawat and Civil Lines. He said those arrested included many office-bearers, including senior vice-president and general secretary of Rawalpindi, president of party’s Taxila chapter, one Nazim and a Naib Nazim. The PML-N had announced to hold a public meeting in Taxila in response to the public meeting held by Gen Musharraf there on April 7.

Mr Jhagra said the government was wrongly claiming that it had allowed every one to reach the Supreme Court building on Friday when Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry appeared before the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). He said the police though allowed senior party leaders to go to the Supreme Court building, it stopped several party workers at pickets and did not allow them to reach Constitution Avenue.

Mr Jhagra said the Friday’s protest demonstration in Islamabad had proved that all the opposition parties, lawyers and civil society organizations were united in support of the chief justice. He expressed the hope that the opposition parties would hold more powerful show on April 18 when the chief justice would be appearing before the SJC.