CM urges weekly PTI assemblies outside IHC

Vows Adiala visits, rallies as PTI decries force used against workers on Nov 26

PESHAWAR:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has announced that Pakistan Tehreek?e?Insaf (PTI) Members of the National and Provincial Assemblies, Senators, and ticket?holders from across the country will gather outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) every Tuesday.

He further declared that he, along with the PTI founder's sisters, will visit Adiala Jail weekly until they are granted a meeting with the party's incarcerated leader.

Addressing a prayer gathering held in Peshawar to commemorate PTI workers who lost their lives during the November 26 Islamabad protest, the Chief Minister said he would personally visit Adiala Jail every Thursday until the meeting takes place. He also announced a public rally in Peshawar's Hayatabad area on December 7.

Afridi termed November 26 a tragic day for the party, alleging that peaceful demonstrators were met with violence and gunfire. He said this was not the first instance of force being used against PTI workers, citing the events of May 9 and November 26 as examples of "brutality against peaceful protest."

He accused "powerful elements" of attempting to suppress constitutional rights and prevent the rule of law. "Some people want chaos. They want us to make a mistake so they can use it as an excuse for action," he said, adding that PTI would not give authorities "another chance to fire on us." He urged party legislators and ticket?holders to ensure their presence outside the IHC every Tuesday, warning that anyone absent would be publicly shamed.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, General Secretary Salman Akram Raja, and provincial president Junaid Akbar also addressed the ceremony. Barrister Gohar dedicated November 26 to those who lost their lives during the Islamabad protest, stating that the party's struggle was solely for constitutional rights, not confrontation. He alleged that the party's mandate in Haripur had been "stolen."

General Secretary Raja said PTI workers had faced "state oppression" but insisted that the public remained united behind the party's vision. "Stand firm," he told supporters, "the prisoner of Adiala will soon be among you. We will go to Adiala and secure his release."