Imran Khan was arrested from his residence in Lahore on August 5 last year. (File)
Islamabad:
Former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Party on Sunday announced its plans to hold a nationwide protest next month on the completion of one year since the arrest of the party’s founder, demanding his immediate release and relief is provided for inflation-hit countries. masses.
The 71-year-old former cricketer and politician was arrested from his residence in Lahore on August 5 last year after he was convicted in the Toshakhana case filed against him by the Election Commission of Pakistan for concealing the sale of gifts he received from had gotten him. the state register.
Former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser said the final decision on the protests would be made at the party meeting, but they were planning major demonstrations across the country on August 5.
“On August 5, we will hold rallies and major demonstrations across Pakistan on two issues. First of all, August 5 is the day of Imran Khan’s arrest, he was arrested illegally in a fabricated case,” he said at a press conference.
He added that there will also be protests against inflation and the imprisonment of other Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf members.
He urged the public to join Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s protest call against inflation and illegal arrest of the founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
Imran Khan’s arrest in the Toshakhana case was later stayed by the Islamabad High Court, but he was not released and arrested in other cases. He remains lodged in Rawalpindi’s high-security Adiala prison.
Qaiser also condemned the alleged official crackdown on Pakistani lawmakers and Tehreek-e-Insaf supporters, questioning the dignity of parliament if lawmakers were humiliated.
He demanded the withdrawal of baseless cases against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf members and threatened to launch nationwide sit-ins, for which he also invited all parties to join them, labeling the current government as fake.
Qaisar alleged that independent candidates who won with the support of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf were pressured to switch allegiances and sides. He urged the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognizance.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Secretary General Omar Ayub Khan said party-backed lawmakers are being rounded up by agencies and implicated in cases of alleged corruption.
He also accused the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of trying to drive a wedge between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and the military to create conflict. He suggested that immediate new elections were the only solution to the political unrest.
The decision to hold a protest on the first anniversary of Imran Khan’s arrest comes after the party failed to organize a protest in Islamabad on Friday after authorities banned such demonstrations in the national capital.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)