People rejected PTI call: ministers

ISLAMABAD: Adviser to Prime Minister Rana Sanaullah has said people were not stopped from attending the PTI rally but the number of the participants was extremely low.

Talking to Geo News Programme Naya Pakistan, Sana said the people of Punjab, particularly of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, had rejected the call for the rally. “However, the speeches in the rally proved the earlier decision of not allowing the rally was right. They were preparing for another May 9 and the speeches were aimed to create anarchy in the country. If the state institutions should remain in their limits, what about the political parties? They want to hold a rally in Lahore but I challenge them to cross the Attock bridge. They will be paid in the same coin,” he added.

Sana said there would be no judicial package and the prime minister had also clarified it.

In a video message, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar said that, contrary to the PTI leadership’s tall claims, the people of Pakistan had rejected its rally.

“Millions of people who were supposed to bring a revolution today —nobody knows where they have gone. Have they gone to some other country or another place?” he asked.

He stated that the former ruling party had to resort to fake videos to give the impression of a huge rally and uploaded false and misleading posts on social media to cover up thin attendance.

“PTI has been spreading lies and propaganda on social media by sharing old videos of rallies from Kashmir and even Indian Punjab farmers’ [rallies] footage,” he remarked.

The minister made it clear that the PTI leadership could not escape accountability through such tactics. He said the PTI founder and chairman would have to face trial for corrupt practices.

Speaking to Geo News, Tarar said that the rally participants pelted stones at the police near the venue, reiterating that “the Imran Khan-founded party never believes in peaceful protests”.

Earlier, the police found a suspicious bag near the PTI gathering venue in Sangjani. A hand grenade, detonator, electric wires and other explosive materials were recovered from the bag, said police. Police said the bomb disposal squad was sent to the site and an investigation was underway. To bolster security, a heavy contingent of law-enforcement personnel, including police, Rangers, and paramilitary forces, were stationed at the rally venue and across the capital.

Meanwhile, taking a jibe at KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur, Minister for Defence Khawaja Asif said that he could not maintain law and order in his own province and was talking about a ‘Lashkar’.” “If he has a Lashkar, he should maintain peace in his own province. What to say about the person who talked about the Bangladesh-like situation and had come to Islamabad with gangs.”

He said that Gandapur should remain true to his words and get Imran Khan released in 15 days. He said the KP CM should also tell on whose instructions he came to meet the prime minister.

Meanwhile, Punjab Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb took a strong exception to what she alleged the language used by KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur and said that such a language about women was contrary to the Pakhtuns. She said that this was the mindset which triggered violence on May 9. She said the PTI’s aggressive stance had spoiled the youth of the country.

Earlier, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari stated that holding rallies would not bring the PTI founder out of jail. “We are not afraid of the rallies but actions of PTI members,” she said.

She said there was not a Jalsa in Islamabad, but a concert held using the resources of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. People were brought to the Jalsa in Rescue 1122 vehicles, she added.

She expressed these views while speaking to the media at the DGPR. “It is unfortunate for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to have rulers like PTI founder Imran Khan. The people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were deceived in the name of Naya Pakistan. They were brought from KP to attend this rally, and God knows how much was paid to the participants,” she maintained.

She said that everyone involved in the events of May 9 would have to answer for it. “May 9 is a historic event, similar to the fall of Dhaka, and it can never be forgotten. During the PTI era, 40 cases were tried in military courts. If the GHQ attack case can be tried in military courts, why not the case of May 9 attack by the PTI founder?” she asked

The minister also mentioned that Imran Khan had opposed the NAB amendments, but now his application for relief was the first that was submitted to the Bureau.