Police-PTI workers clash

Police say protestors set vehicle ablaze; clashes reported as security personnel fire tear gas to disperse crowd

ISLAMABAD:

Clashes broke out between police and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters at several places on the Srinagar Highway during the appearance of former prime minister and party Chairman Imran Khan at the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday.

Several PTI workers, who had come out to express their solidarity with Imran, were arrested by the police from the Srinagar Highway and from outside the IHC for violating the Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).

The PTI workers were stopped by the police at different locations, leading to the clashes. The police prevented them from gathering in the wake of the imposition of the Section 144 in Islamabad, which banned the gathering of five or more people.

To disperse the PTI workers around the high court, the police fired tear gas shells and detained several workers from outside the court. They also arrested a number of activists who had gathered near the Srinagar Highway in G-10 Sector of the federal capital.

The PTI had called on workers from different cities across the country to gather at Highway in G-13 sector to welcome Imran following his release from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) custody on the order of the Supreme Court.

On the instruction of the apex court, Imran appeared in the IHC to seek bail. When the police arrived reached the spot on the highway, a large number of workers started throwing stones, leading to clashes with the police that continued for seven hours.

During the clashes, police shells hit residential buildings, causing tear gas to enter various houses and affected civilians. According to an Islamabad Police statement, miscreants damaged government properties in the G-13 sector.