PTI leadership goes 'underground' in Peshawar

All party leaders' phones non-responsive after Pervez Khattak's 'peaceful protest' call

PESHAWAR:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa leadership has gone underground amid a crackdown on party workers and leaders over violent protests, it was reported on Thursday.

All PTI office-holders' mobile phones appeared switched off, and they were also non-responsive on social media platforms.

It may be noted that PTI K-P chapter in-charge Pervez Khattak had called for "peaceful protests" on a daily basis earlier in the day.

The news comes two days after violent protests followed former PM Imran Khan's arrest by the Rangers paramilitary force from the Islamabad High Court (IHC), over corruption allegations. A day earlier, an accountability court granted the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) his eight-day physical remand.

He was accused of looting Rs50 billion of the national treasury, along with a property tycoon, and getting the Al-Qadir University Trust registered on 450-kanal.

Hours after Imran's arrest, the IHC declared that his arrest from the court's premises was carried out legally, while the PTI alleges political persecution.

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Notably, the PTI chief's arrest also came a day after the military warned him against making “baseless allegations” after he again accused a senior intelligence officer of plotting to kill him.

Since Imran's arrest, in the two provinces, Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), at least six people have died of the violence that ensued. Authorities have arrested nearly 1,500 PTI workers and leaders in Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar and other parts of the country.

Government buildings and assets were attacked and set ablaze by protesters in many cities in the two days. The authorities said that scores of policemen were severely injured in clashes with the protesters.

In view of the unrest, the federal cabinet approved the deployment of Pakistan Army under Article 245 of the Constitution in Punjab, K-P, and the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) on the recommendation of the interior ministry.

Earlier this morning, the ICT said that PTI leaders, including its vice president Shah Mehmood Qureshi, were arrested for "inciting arson and violent protests under a plan for threatening peace".

Qureshi was arrested in the wee hours of Thursday. As of now, party leaders Asad Umar, Fawad Chaudhry, Omar Sarfraz Cheema, Falknaz Chitrali, Mussarat Jamsheed Cheema and Malika Bukhari have been arrested.