PTI raises stakes with long march

Asad vows to continue protest until demands met

SWABI:

Senior PTI leader Asad Qaiser on Tuesday said the PTI will hold a peaceful long march and continue its protest until its constitutional demands are met, as tensions between the federal government and the party deepen over political rights and governance in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

Qaiser, a former speaker of the National Assembly and secretary-general of the Tehreek Tahafuz-e-Aain Pakistan, was responding to remarks by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about the PTI's planned march.

The PTI was not opposed to Pakistan's development and prosperity but wanted to see the country become a developed and progressive state, Qaiser said.

He called on the prime minister to clarify whether the Constitution gives citizens the right to choose their leaders, recalling that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had campaigned under the slogan "Respect the vote".

Qaiser said the PTI's constitutional rights had been curtailed and alleged that its founder Imran Khan, his wife and sisters were in detention, while more than 2,000 party workers were in jail.

He also accused the federal government of denying Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and its government their constitutional rights, including the province's "due share" under the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award.

He said commitments made to residents of the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) at the time of their merger with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa had also not been fulfilled.

Qaiser questioned whether the federal government had met its constitutional responsibilities in the fight against militancy and in addressing worsening law and order in the province.

He said the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government had convened a jirga on the province's security and political situation, attended by representatives of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and other parties, which adopted a unanimous resolution.

He questioned whether the federal government would continue to disregard the position expressed by the province's political leadership and other stakeholders.