Tensions Rise as Police Block PTI Protest, Arrest Leaders, and Clash with Workers in Rawalpindi
Islamabad: After Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced a protest at Liaquat Bagh, a game of cat and mouse ensued between the police and party workers. However, neither the leadership nor the workers were able to reach the protest site.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had announced a protest at Liaquat Bagh. In anticipation of the protest, police blocked all entry points to Rawalpindi by placing containers.
Throughout the day, there were cat-and-mouse chases between PTI caravans arriving from Peshawar, workers gathering in Rawalpindi, and law enforcement officers.
The routes from Murree to Rawalpindi remained blocked, while the Grand Trunk (GT) Road at the Jhelum River Bridge was also closed off with containers. Several roads in Chakwal were similarly shut down.
The M2 Motorway at Kallar Kahar, Balkassar, and Neela Dullah interchanges were also closed. At Attock, when PTI workers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa removed containers placed at Chach Interchange, the police responded with tear gas to stop them.
Meanwhile, outside Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi, police dispersed PTI workers gathered there and arrested several of them.
Meanwhile, outside Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi, police dispersed PTI workers gathered there and arrested several of them.
Police detained several leaders, including Barrister Gohar and Salman Akram Raja, preventing them from reaching Liaquat Bagh.
Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gandapur, was stranded for several hours at Burhan Interchange before eventually returning to Peshawar.
a journalist Haider Shirazi, covering the PTI rally, was detained and assaulted by Punjab police officers. Despite identifying himself as a journalist, Shirazi was subjected to violence, resulting in injuries to his head and face.
Following orders from the IG Punjab, Haider Shirazi was released, while the CPO Rawalpindi suspended the officers involved in the incident.
