PTI, JUI-F announce February 8 protests

Separate demos, strike calls raise fears of disruption as both parties plan major activities across Peshawar

PESHAWAR:

Two major political parties, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), have announced separate protest activities in Peshawar on February 8, raising the likelihood of political agitation and disruption in the provincial capital.

JUI-F has declared a protest demonstration against what it described as growing lawlessness, corruption, the passage of non-Islamic legislation by parliament, government indifference towards key provincial issues, and alleged adverse policies regarding religious seminaries.

The announcement was made during a meeting of the party's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Executive Committee held at Mufti Mahmood Markaz, Peshawar, under the chairmanship of Provincial Ameer Senator Maulana Attaur Rehman.

The meeting was attended by Senator Maulana Attaul Haq Darvesh, Mufti Ubaidullah, Mufti Fazal Ghafoor, Mufti Nasir Mahmood, Maulana Abdul Haseeb, Muhammad Raheem Haqqani, Shah Hussain Alai, Maulana Ahmad Ali Darvesh, along with other senior party leaders.

According to party sources, a key meeting of the Provincial Shura will be held on February 7 at 10am at Mufti Mahmood Markaz. The meeting will be attended by district ameers and nazims, members of the parliamentary party, tehsil nazims, and provincial conveners of various party wings to finalise the protest strategy.

The JUI-F executive committee also expressed concern over the government's alleged negligence towards the displaced populations of Tirah and Kurram, despite the approval of Rs4 billion for their rehabilitation. The meeting decided to further intensify the party's ongoing movement and announced a "historic" public conference in Mardan on April 12, where party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman is expected to announce the future course of action. A four-member committee headed by Maulana Ataul Haq Darvesh was constituted to oversee arrangements, while a separate committee was formed to review expected local government elections and new delimitation by the Election Commission.

Meanwhile, PTI has announced a wheel-jam and shutter-down strike on February 8 to mark two years since the 2024 general elections. To ensure the success of the protest, the party has initiated contacts with traders' associations and transporters across the city.

PTI committees have urged traders to keep markets and commercial centres closed and transporters to keep vehicles off the roads on the day. The party has also announced a rally at 11am from Hashtnagri. PTI leader Zubair Ahmed Qureshi said preparations were in full swing and that around 250 small and large traders' bodies from Peshawar City, Peshawar Cantonment, University Town, Hayatabad and inner-city areas had been contacted.