PPP wants PTI protesters tried under Army Act

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan People’s Party Sunday demanded the government take strict action against PTI protesters who attacked public and private properties and all those who were involved in attacking military installations should be tried under the Army Act 1952.

“The action should be taken under the Army Act 1952 on damage to army installations,” said Secretary General PPP Syed Nayyar Hussain Bokhari while addressing a press conference along with Special Assistant to PM and Secretary Information PPP Faisal Karim Kundi, Secretary General PPP Central Punjab Hassan Murtaza and PPP media coordinator Nazir Dhoki here Sunday.

Nayyar Hussain Bokhari reiterated the PPP decision to fully participate in the protest of the Pakistan Democratic Movement announced by Maulana Fazalur Rehman outside the Supreme Court today (Monday). “All the office bearers, leadership and workers will participate fully in the PDM protest,” he said.

The PPP Secretary General said the bill for Imran Khan’s hospitality and keeping in the Police Rest House should be sent to the Chief Justice and he should pay the bill. He said Imran Khan is responsible for the situation that the country is facing and his party is responsible for the political and economic situation of the country.

Bokhari said PPP had demanded a larger bench in the case of elections in Punjab. “Our understanding was that the Supreme Court decision was of four and three but the Chief Justice wants to consider the decision of three and two and implement it and that why we demanded the constitution of a full court,” he said.

The PPP secretary general also demanded the Supreme Court to give reasons for declaring the arrest of Imran Khan illegal. “Judges speak through their judgments, not messages through remarks and we want to remind the judiciary that your decisions should be in accordance with the Constitution and law,” he said.

He said the judiciary is deciding on likes and dislikes and the PPP wanted to remind the judiciary that it has to do justice and its decisions should be based on the Constitution. “No civil judge has welcomed the accused. I would like to ask the judiciary what were the reasons for declaring the arrest illegal,” he said.

Bokhari said the parliament gave a message to the judiciary but the judiciary did not understand that the parliament had the power to enact and amend the law. “As per Constitution, the state will exercise its power through the elected representatives neither judge nor generals. If they wanted to legislate then get elected through the vote,” he added. He said the PPP had never boycotted court proceedings or elections. “I demand that the bill for Imran Khan’s hospitality should be sent to the Chief Justice and he should pay the bill. A year ago today, the Charter of Democracy was signed by Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif. Many clauses of the Charter of Democracy have been implemented. Implementation of some clauses of the Charter of Democracy needs time. In the past, we did not break a pot during the long march. Government and military property was damaged. The PTI attacked government and military installations at the behest of its leadership. He is the only person who was given relief during his remand,” he alleged. PPP Information Secretary Faisal Karim Kundi said that Imran Khan was the only person in the history of Pakistan that had been given relief during remand. “If the Supreme Court had power, it could have declared Imran Khan as a lifetime Prime Minister,” he said.

Kundi said, “I may ask the Chief Justice that your favourite threatened the Army Chief in the premises of the High Court, did the court take a suo moto notice.” He demanded removal of the section 144 for Monday’s protest and said the PPP had brought out a historic peaceful long march from Karachi to Islamabad last year in which not a single pot was broken. He said the PTI had attacked public property and military installations at the behest of its leadership and strict action be taken against them. “Criminal cases should be registered against them as even ambulances were also targeted,” he said.