PTI clashes with Punjab police negate Imran Khan’s ‘law-abiding claims’

PESHAWAR, Mar 15 (APP): The PTI workers’ violent clashes with Punjab police outside Zaman Park Lahore negated the law-abiding tall claims of former prime minister Imran Khan, said political experts here on Wednesday.

“Instead of facing cases in courts and cooperating with police, Imran Khan has failed to prevent his enraged workers from violent riots that caused chaos and disruption in flow of traffic in surrounding areas of Zaman Park, creating great difficulties for people,” said Ikhtair Wali Khan, PMLN KP spokesman while talking to APP.

He said a large number of policemen including officers were injured after stones were pelted on them by the PTI workers, saying Imran was responsible for these attacks on police. He said the PTI chief was considering himself above the law, constitution and was continuously evading courts despite several orders.

In democratic society, he said that no precedence of such indecent attitude could be found as demonstrated by the PTI chief and workers, adding that such deplorable events on the part of PTI were sending a bad message abroad.

“If a three times elected Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif can appeared over 200 times in courts along with his daughter Maryam Nawaz and faced imprisonment then why Imran Khan can’t appear in courts to defend his cases,” he said, adding Imran Khan should also learn lesson from former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, who fully cooperated with police during appearance in the supreme court and faced the case with steadfastness.

Ikhtair Wali said it would be better for Imran Khan to cooperate with police and appear in courts after his plaster and bullets drama was fully exposed before masses. He said Imran was trying to destabilize the country after knowing that his politics became irrelevant, adding that all his dramas and foreign conspiracy narrative was rejected by masses.

Wajid Ali Khan, ANP leader, accused Imran Khan and his party workers for continuously violating the law of the land as section 144 CrPC was imposed in Lahore and there was a complete ban on congregation of people for maintenance of public order.

He said the PTI workers and leadership were doing no service to the country after ransacking public properties and pelting stones on police vehicles at Lahore, saying that Pakistan was a democratic country having an independent judiciary and free media, which could be approached for to address any grievances.

The ANP leader said the PTI had no regard for free media as evidence of the recent attack on journalists at Lahore after exposing the real face of Imran Khan before masses. He urged Imran Khan to cooperate with the police in fulfillment of its official duties and peacefully disbursed his enraged workers from Zaman Park.

“Honest political leaders are not afraid of being arrested and always face cases in courts with courage and steadfastness,” he said. ANP leader said PTI workers and leadership were unnerved after premature dissolution of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab assemblies, adding Zaman Park’s drama was staged by PTI in a bid to politically destabilise Pakistan.

All political parties except PTI wanted that elections in all provinces including KP and Punjab and centre should be held collectively in October-November following completion of five years term of the existing assemblies in August this year.

The tribal elders of the newly merged areas also demanded postponement of the elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakthunkhwa till conclusion of the digital census.

Malik Azmat, former State Minister and PPP leader said it was extremely unfortunate that PTI workers have taken law in hands and created obstruction in police duties at Zaman Park. “I wonder if Imran can go and participate in election rallies and public meetings why he (Imran) could not attend courts’ proceedings despite several orders,” he said.

“Imran’s anti-corruption slogans were also exposed before masses as PTI had closed down his own created Ehtesab Commission at Peshawar following the arrest of the PTI’s own minister,” adding PTI’s flagship billion tree project had been taken over by the NAB while BRT project was constructed on four times high cost than Multan and Islamabad metros, thus taxpayer money was wasted by the PTI.

“Pakistan’s can afford political instability in the prevailing geo-political and economic situation and a broad-based political consensus was required ahead of the election to take the country out of the existing difficult situation.”

The PPP had joined the coalition government for the sake of continuity of democracy and strengthening of democratic institutions. He claimed that Imran Khan was trying to “destabilize the country and its economy through his confrontational politics”.

Malik Azmat said that Imran Khan had destroyed the economy and used youth for the fulfillment of his personal agenda. However, he said Imran Khan would never succeed in his negative designs as all the political entities in government were united to take the country on the path of economic and political stability.

The experts said that the country could not afford political instability and a broad-based reconciliation was imperative for upcoming elections to take the ship of democracy to safe shores.