Opposition demands judicial probe into May 9

TTA leaders urge state institutions to work within their limits

ISLAMABAD:

Leaders of the Tehreek Tahafuz-e-Aain (TTA) alliance on Wednesday demanded a judicial inquiry into the May 9, 2023 incidents and making the reports of the Army Public School Commission and Abbottabad Commission probes public.

The opposition alliance organized a seminar on ‘Protection of the Constitution: How and Why’, which was attended by the top leaders of the constituent parties, besides lawyers, politicians, scholars, journalists, and members of civil society.

TTA chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai, while addressing the seminar, warned that their workers would be on the streets if martial law was imposed in the country and the Constitution was subverted. “Unless the state institutions stay within their limits, the problems of the country will not be resolved, he added.

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Addressing the event, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said that in Tuesday’s press conference, the director general of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) gave the facts like Form 47.

He added that the PTI founder had repeatedly stated that the “country is also ours and the army is also ours”. He also stated that no letter had been written to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for stopping the financial assistance to Pakistan.

On the occasion, PTI Secretary General and National Assembly Opposition Leader Omar Ayub said that he also rejected the ISPR chief’s press conference. He demanded that the reports of the Army Public School Commission and the Abbottabad Commission be public.

Former National Assembly speaker and senior PTI leader Asad Qaiser told the participants of the seminar that all the institutions must stay within their limits. He urged the judiciary to look into the allegations leveled against the party.

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Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) head Raja Nasir Abbas Jafri said that only the devil benefitted from the violence on May 9 last year. Maulana Muhammad Khan Sherani also demanded the formation of a judicial commission to investigate the May 9 incidents.

Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Naib Amir Liaquat Baloch said that the role of the establishment in politics and democracy should end. “We will accept elections when conducted with interference from the establishment. PTI lawyer Sardar Latif Khosa also criticized the ISPR chief’s press conference.