ISLAMABAD: The government is contemplating a crackdown on the leaders of the Pakistan Democratic Alliance (PDM) ahead of its upcoming rallies in Peshawar, Multan and Lahore.
Well-placed sources told Business Recorder that Prime Minister Imran Khan has discussed with his close aides the option of a crackdown on the PDM leaders to keep them from holding public gatherings amid coronavirus pandemic.
“Although, the plan has not been finalized, but the government is of the opinion that if public rallies continue from the forum of PDM then action would be taken,” said a senior PTI leader, on condition of anonymity.
The PDM has already rejected the government’s instructions to call off the protest rallies in the backdrop of alarming spread of COVID-19 in the country and has announced its plans to continue the protest campaign.
While reacting to reports of the government’s plan to crackdown against the opposition leaders, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the opposition would not be intimidated by these tactics, adding that PDM’s upcoming rallies would be held as per schedule and attended by people in greater numbers compared to the past.
“The selected rulers are making an attempt to reopen 20-year old fabricated cases against their opponents in a failed attempt to intimidate political opponents,” she said, while referring to the arrest of two PML-N’s former members of Punjab Assembly, Chaudhry
Sarfraz Afzal and Ahsan Raza Khan, earlier in the day in Lahore.
She alleged that in utter frustration, the government is fabricating cases against the opposition leaders in a bid to create hurdles in the PDM’s upcoming rally in Lahore on December 13 and vowed that the Lahore public meeting will be held as per schedule despite all obstacles.
The PDM leaders would also sign a Charter of Pakistan in its Lahore rally. A five-member committee, comprising PML-N’s Ahsan Iqbal and Khurram Dastgir, PPP’s Sherry Rehman and Raza Rabbani and JUI-F’s Kamran Murtaza has been formed to finalize the draft of the charter.
Reacting to the government’s reported plan to arrest PDM leaders, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Farhatullah Babar said the PPP is not scared of highhandedness of the government.
“Arrest, intimidation and all that—these coercive tactics are not new to us. The PPP has a history of standing up to tyrant regimes and braving the odds in the face of suppression and tyranny,” he told Business Recorder.
“We would not postpone rallies and public gathering as they are already scheduled. However, we will hold meetings in next few days to evolve a strategy for taking all possible preventative measures against COVID-19,” he said.
The PPP leadership has given instructions to party workers to follow Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for protection against coronavirus, he added.
“We will ensure taking all possible measures against COVID-19 in our gatherings, but we will not accept any dictation from the government,” Babar added.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazal (JUI-F) Secretary General Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri also rejected ‘threats’ from government and said that the government wanted to divert the attention of the people from recently massive rigging of the elections in Gilgit-Baltistan. He said that his party will go ahead as per plan and would not accept any such conditions. He said that JUI-F has not accepted the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government from day one.
He further stated that PDM has devised action plan to get rid of the selected government and all the public gatherings will be organized as per plan.
Haideri said that PTI government’s two years in power have paralyzed all the sectors of economy and only benefited a few cronies of Imran Khan. People of Pakistan are forced to buy sugar and wheat flour at double prices as compared to 2018 prices, while gas, power, petrol and other daily use items have also out of the reach of the common man, he said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
Comments
Comments are closed.