Mahmood Achakzai demands judicial inquiry into action against PTI

Chairman of Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and leader of Tahafuz-e-Aeen Pakistan, Mahmood Khan Achakzai, has called for a judicial inquiry into the alleged crackdown on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers, Express News reported.

Addressing a press conference in Quetta, Achakzai demanded legal action against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, and Islamabad’s Inspector General of Police, accusing them of violence against PTI workers.

He criticised the continued imprisonment of PTI’s founding leader despite his electoral victory, urging his release on bail.

“Releasing him will not cause the sky to fall,” Achakzai remarked.

He claimed that PTI workers were targeted with gunfire during peaceful protests at D-Chowk in Islamabad and demanded a transparent judicial probe into the matter.

“PTI workers were shot in the head. Thousands of peaceful protesters were subjected to violence," the nationlist leader alleged.

Judicial accountability is necessary,” he said, expressing disillusionment with state institutions and emphasizing the need for institutions to operate within their constitutional domains to alleviate the country's crises.

Achakzai also highlighted security issues in Balochistan, criticising the lack of arrests following killings in Musa Khel, Rara Sham, and Harnai.

He questioned the capabilities of law enforcement, particularly in the case of an abducted child from Quetta, urging swift action.

He concluded by calling for dialogue among all political parties and suggested organising elections within three to four months to form a 'legitimate government.'

Recently, Ministry of Interior on November 27 confirmed that no fatalities were reported among the PTI protesters during a major security operation aimed at dispersing the party’s sit-in in Islamabad.

The protest, which escalated on November 26, was brought to an end after law enforcement agencies conducted a large-scale raid in the capital city.

PTI protesters, led by Bushra Bibi, wife of PTI founder Imran Khan, had gathered in Islamabad after breaking through multiple security lines, reaching the edge of the heavily guarded Red Zone.

However, the protest was called off after a sweeping midnight operation by security forces, which resulted in the arrest of hundreds of demonstrators.