Civil society protests outside Imran’s residence against DI Khan target killings

ISLAMABAD: The civil society members Sunday staged a peaceful demonstration outside the residence of PTI Chairman Imran Khan here against the recent wave of target killings in Dera Ismail Khan and blamed the provincial government’s inaction for this gory trend.

Scores of young activists, mostly lawyers, journalists and students, including some females, gathered outside Imran Khan’s residence and stayed there for some time, carrying placards inscribed with slogans against target killings and KP Police. A sit-in was also organised a day earlier in Banigala against killings in DI Khan, but it went without being paid attention to by the PTI or Imran. Some of the activists spoke on the occasion and lashed out at the divisions in the society and lamented that if a Sunni got killed, only Sunnis raise voice against it, and if a Pakhtun was gunned down, only Pakhtuns would speak up and the same was the case with Shias. They called for unity among the oppressed segments. The speakers laid emphasis on forging unity against the menace of terrorism, militancy and increasing intolerance in Pakistan.

They also lashed out at Imran for not uttering a word against killings in DI Khan or writing a few lines on his Twitter account. The activists were concerned over what they called the government and the media’s silence on the wave of target killings. They said that some 450 kilometres away in DI Khan, several children had been made orphans and housewives widows at the hands of perpetrators.

They called for practical measures to put an end to the persecution of Shias. They also called on the KP inspector general of police to go after the killers of innocent people instead of holding news conferences every now and then. The activists advocated justice to the victims of target killings.