Pak govt and PTI spar over casualties, fresh row over plans to ban Imran Khan’s party

The protest by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and subsequent crackdown on party workers and Imran Khan’s supporters by the Pakistan government has turned into a battle of accusations and cross-accusations. Moreover, local media reports claim that the current regime is devising a plan to impose ban on Imran-led PTI.

After the security forces launched a major crackdown to disperse thousands of PTI protestors hitting the Islamabad streets on November 26, government officials claimed to have apprehended 4,185 PTI workers, who are set to face terrorism charges in country’s Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC).

Information Minister Atta Tarar said that the crackdown to disperse and end PTI protest in Islamabad was done with non-lethal weapons, insisting that there were zero casualties of protestors.

“PTI has started a false propaganda campaign claiming that its workers were killed by shooting of security forces. I want to confirm this that no live weapons were used by the security forces to disperse the protestors. PTI is trying to falsely blame the government and trying to serve its vested interest to play dirty politics”, said Information Minister Atta Tarar.

“PTI claims hundreds of its workers were killed. I ask them, where are the bodies? Why isn’t there any data present in the hospitals? PTI is running a false narrative that hospitals have been forced to hide the record, which against is completely false”, said Atta Tarar.

On the other hand, PTI leaders have accused the government of using state machinery to crush dissent and also attempting to cover-up its oppressive policies by hiding casualties.

A PTI leaders claimed that at least 12 party workers were killed while hundreds others were injured.

“Till now, at least 12 people were martyred during the protest. The authorities did not allow the bodies of the dead to be handed over to the families initially, and the bodies were given to the families only three days later”, claimed PTI leader Sheikh Waqas Akram while speaking to the media.

Meanwhile, Shehbaz Sharif government is gearing up to impose a ban on PTI, teaming up with the civil and military leadership to formulate a strategy to block any further attempt to storm towards the capital.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, during a recent cabinet meeting, stated that PTI protest and the chaos in the capital Islamabad has tarnished Pakistan’s image.

“Pakistan’s image has been tarnished all over. This has been the third to fourth invasion against the federal capital during the past eight months by PTI. The country’s economy against witnessed a major blow as according to a conservative estimate such protests cause Rs.190 billion per day loss to the national economy”, said PM Shehbaz Sharif.

The statement from PM Shehbaz come at a time when a resolution to impose a ban on PTI was passed in the Balochistan provincial assembly and a similar resolution was presented before the Punjab assembly because of what was termed at PTI’s anti-Pakistan activities.

On the other hand, PTI has also decided to reciprocate government’s ban attempt, stating that PTI would also be presenting a resolution in the Khyber Pukhtunkhwa (KP) assembly to ban the ruling political parties including Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People Party (PPP).

Experts say that PTI protest and the way the leadership fled the scene including CM KP Ali Amin Gandapur and Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi, while no leadership from the rest of the country came out to join the protest; it has not only dented PTI leadership political position along with its credibility among its supporters, it has also made things more challenging and difficult for PTI founder Imran Khan, whose immediate release was on top of the demands of the PTI protest.

“The coming days may be even more challenging for PTI and its leadership because after thousands of its workers arrested and nabbed, fresh cases have been lodged against Imran Khan, bushra bibi and other leaders of PTI. This would mean that Imran Khan may be spending even more time behind bars and his wife may also end him in jail. All of this is in no way any positive news for PTI or Imran Khan or even for the political future of the party”, said senior political analyst Javed Siddique.