NOWSHERA: Led by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) activists clashed with the police and Frontier Constabulary (FC) while clearing the road in Hazro town of Attock district of Punjab in a bid to reach Islamabad.
The police used teargas shells and baton-charged the PTI workers who tried to remove the containers parked on the road to block all kinds of traffic. The marchers cleared the way for onward journey to Islamabad by removing some of the containers when the police stopped firing the teargas canisters into the crowd.
The chief minister was seen leading the protesters in removing the barriers from the road. The angry protesters set four motorcars and seven motorcycles on fire. The federal and Punjab governments had blocked the Grand Trunk Road and Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway to stop the PTI activists from participating in the protest in Islamabad.
The two governments placed containers and piled up heaps of sand on the GT Road and the Motorway to consolidate the closure of these main transportation means between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.
These roads were blocked at around 18 points from Khairabad to Hazro. The roads were blocked after Chief Minister Pervez Khattak announced that he along with party workers would reach Islamabad at any cost.
The government also deployed FC contingents on these roads to ensure that the PTI workers and leaders didn't reach Islamabad. Earlier at the Swabi Interchange on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway M-1, the chief minister escaped unhurt along with other PTI leaders when the makeshift stage built with wood on a truck collapsed. He was making his speech when the incident happened and caused a scare among the audience and the onlookers.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, provincial ministers Mohammad Atif Khan, Imtiaz Shahid. Jamsheduddin Kakakhel, advisers and special assistants Mushtaq Ghani, Arif Yousaf, former minister Shaukat Yousafzai etc were also on the stage but none was injured. The chief minister resumed his speech soon afterwards.
In his speech at the Swabi Interchange, the chief minister vowed to reach Islamabad come what may. He condemned the use of force against protesters and insisted that they were peaceful.
He said the use of force would not discourage his party workers from reaching Islamabad to break the siege of the Banigala residence of party chairman Imran Khan. "The Constitution allows the citizens to hold peaceful protest and PTI workers will exercise this right," he declared. Pervez Khattak maintained that the PTI activists who wanted to reach Islamabad to participate in the protest were stopped from entering Punjab.
He said the Punjab government and its police had violated the country's laws by prohibiting entry of Pakistanis to Punjab.
"The PML-N is allowed to do whatever it wants, but other Pakistanis are treated harshly when they use their constitutional right," he argued.
The chief minister asked the countrymen to continue the struggle against the dictatorship and bring an end to the rule of the corrupt in Pakistan.
"Nawaz Sharif is the real enemy of Pakistan. He is addicted to corruption and brutality," he alleged.
The chief minister said the masses could get rid of corrupt rulers through consistent efforts as the dictators had never relinquished power without purposeful and disciplined struggle.
"Imran Khan's corruption-free Pakistan mission is facing several challenges. We can overcome these challenges through unity and discipline," he added.
After crossing Hazro the Pervez Khattak caravan reached Burhan Interchange where it again faced tear gas shelling.
Talking to a private TV channel, Khattak said that he has crossed Burhan but it took him four hours to overcome obstacles put by the administration on its way to Burhan.
He directed party workers to rest for the night at Burhan Interchange and resume their journey to Bani Gala on Tuesday morning.
The KP Chief Minister got out of his vehicle and met party workers who were a part of his caravan and urged them to rest for the night at Burhan Interchange. He told them to rest since the caravan would resume its journey to Bani Gala tomorrow.
MANSEHRA: The baton-wielding workers and office-bearers of PTI left the district for taking part in the lockdown of the federal capital.
The workers assembled at the Insaf Chowk. They raised slogans against government and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Speaking briefly, the party's district president Babar Saleem Swati said they would offer resistance if anybody attempted to intercept the PTI's convoy on its way to Islamabad.
Meanwhile, Crackdown on PTI workers continued across Punjab on Monday and the party leadership claimed that thousands of its workers were detained during the last 24 hours.
Party sources said police conducted raids on houses of former governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar, Umar Kasana, a close relative of Imran Khan’s security in-charge Aun Chaudhry, and Shahbaz Khan, a party figure from NA-123 in Lahore. Sarwar could not be arrested as he had already reached Islamabad.
Umar Kasana was arrested by the Defence police, whereas dozens of members could not be arrested in the raids. According to the party sources, crackdown on PTI workers continued till late Monday night.
PTI’s MPA Tahir Majeed Mayo was also taken into custody. Police also raided the house of Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid leader Senator Kamil Ali Agha, but he was not present in the house.
Ch Sarwar said in a statement the rulers' corruption was similar to a suicide attack on democracy. “We don't know why PML-N is afraid of peaceful protest and why it is using force to suppress the voice of masses. But they will have to be accountable for their corruption,” Sarwar added.
Arrests were also made in Okara, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Burewala, Toba Tek Singh, Faisalabad, Phoolnagar, Lalamusa, Hafizabad, NAnkana Sahib, Bahawalpur and Kasur.