Representatives of the ruling coalition on Wednesday came out strongly against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s protests against the arrest of Imran Khan, some of which have turned violent and resulted in the ransacking and destruction of public and private property.
In a press conference from Islamabad, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) alliance chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who also heads the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl), called on the government to take strict action against anyone found guilty of setting fire to public properties. Without naming anyone, he warned that any institution that sought to bring the PTI back into power would be equally guilty of the ongoing chaos. He also blamed Khan for bringing development in the country to a halt during his three-and-a-half years in power.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, meanwhile, issued a statement describing as “regrettable” riots in various cities across the country. Recalling that he had spent 14 years in jail and never called on his party workers to take the law into their hands, he warned that destruction of public property would not be tolerated. The former president also advised Khan to face corruption charges against him in court.
Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, in a statement, condemned PTI workers’ attacks on the Radio Pakistan building in Peshawar. “The attack on the offices of Radio Pakistan and APP by PTI’s armed gangs was condemnable and deplorable,” she said, adding that it was akin to the attack on PTV headquarters in 2014 that the then-government had accused Khan of instigating. She said she had directed the Radio Pakistan director-general to register a first information report against anyone who was involved in the attack on the building.
Describing any acts of violence against government employees, vandalism and damage to property as terrorism, she lamented that PTI workers had also set fire to various monuments. She also accused PTI leaders of instigating arson and sabotage after Khan was arrested earlier this week, questioning why they had not attempted to halt the violence when it erupted after the arrest of the former prime minister.
Energy Minister Khurram Dastgir-Khan, addressing a press conference, accused the PTI of “destructive activities” since 2014, declaring it was fascist and “more dangerous for Pakistan” than India. Claiming that 78 police officers had been injured in violent protests since the PTI chief’s arrest already, he regretted the party’s supporters had also targeted military buildings and set fire to public buses and an ambulance.