• DC issues NOC for party event at Bagh-i-Jinnah
• PTI spokesperson announces rally in front of Quaid’s mausoleum, blames govt for wasting their time
• Home minister warns of action if rally staged on road• PML-N wants permission revoked, accuses PTI of promoting ‘anti-state narrative’

KARACHI: While the government has granted the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf permission to hold their rally at the sprawling Bagh-i-Jinnah despite objections from the PML-N, the opposition party blamed the Sindh administration of “wasting their time” and announced that the public meeting will now be held in front of the Quaid’s mausoleum.

In a late night development, PTI spokesperson Fauzia Siddiqui posted on X, formerly Twitter, that the Sindh government wasted their time as the deputy commissioner East had issued a no-objection certificate (NOC) on Saturday evening at 6:30pm.

“The public power witnessed in Karachi yesterday has frightened them; they don’t understand what to do now. The people of Karachi will be at the MazareQuaid public gate at 2pm with our guest, Chief Minister of KP, Sohail Afridi. We will hold a public meeting at the VIP gate at 2pm,” she stated.

In response, Sindh Home Minister Zia Lanjar warned of strict action if any public meeting was held on the road. “No one is allowed to challenge the writ of the government,” he said in a statement.

A visit to the venue on Saturday evening showed that no preparations had been carried out at BaghiJinnah, as scores of PTI workers gathered on the main road in front of the Quaid’s mausoleum near the Numaish traffic intersection.

Earlier in the day, PTI Sindh president Haleem Adil Sheikh visited the venue and told a press conference that Karachi would prove its political loyalty in today’s rally, urging Karachiites to be at Bagh-i-Jinnah to become the voice of incarcerated leader Imran Khan.

“The response on January 9 proves that Karachi remains Imran Khan’s stronghold and the people of the entire Pakistan stand firmly with him. Now it’s time for another power show that will prove that this city firmly stands with Imran Khan,” he added.

Earlier, Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon announced that a conditional NOC had been issued by the DC-East, placing strict conditions on the PTI leadership and rally organisers.

He said full responsibility for law and order, traffic management and adherence to security protocols would rest with the organisers. At the same time, the district administration retained the authority to revoke permission on security grounds at any time.

PML-N urges PPP to revoke persmission

Earlier, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and federal government’s Sindh affairs spokesperson Barrister Raja Khaliq-uz-Zaman Ansari urged the provincial authorities to withdraw the permission, warning that allowing a party he accused of promoting an “anti-state narrative” to hold a public gathering was unacceptable.

Speaking at a press conference, Barrister Ansari likened criticism of military operations to a betrayal of the Constitution and cautioned that permitting such rallies could set a dangerous precedent.

“The party which is accused of promoting an anti-state narrative should not be allowed to hold public rallies. It’s unacceptable and poses serious risks. Criticism of security operations is clearly hooliganism as such remarks amount to a betrayal of the Constitution and the state,” he added.

He warned that permitting such gatherings could set a dangerous precedent, questioning whether criminal elements or even riverine dacoits could also seek similar permissions in the future.

Barrister Ansari claimed that a recent PTI rally had disrupted Karachi for hours despite attracting fewer than 500 participants, alleging that many attendees were non-local, including Afghan nationals, and asserting that the people of Sindh had effectively rejected the event by staying away.

He also criticised Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Khan Afridi for allegedly questioning the legitimacy of other parties’ electoral mandates, calling it an insult to voters across Sindh and other provinces.

Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2026