‘No collaboration’: PAT denies tie-up with Imran Khan for rallies
Eid arrangements being made at the sit-in venue; rallies planned in other cities
ISLAMABAD:
The Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) denied on Sunday it had announced rallies in big cities of the country in collaboration with its ‘political cousin’, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
A senior PAT leader told The Express Tribune that PAT chief Dr Tahirul Qadri had announced to hold rallies in Faisalabad and Lahore but they had nothing to do with the PTI. The decision, according to insiders, was taken following PTI’s rallies in several cities organized to put more pressure on the government.
The PTI and PAT had started their anti-government marches on August 14 while highlighting allegations of rigging in the 2013 general elections and killing of the 14 PAT workers in Model Town Lahore, respectively.
Both parties also entered the high security red zone despite barricades and are continuing their sit-ins in front of the Parliament House at D-Chowk of the Constitution Avenue.
The PAT would be holding a rally in Faisalabad on October 12 and another in Lahore on October 19. Both cities are known as the strongholds of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). However, the date for Karachi rally has not been finalized yet.
“The PAT chief had asked senior office-bearers to go back to their homes and make arrangements for the rallies,” said Naveed Khan, chief of his own faction of Muslim League and an ally of the PAT.
Responding to a question, he said there was no consultation with the PTI before the announcement of rallies in the major cities of the country was made. The rallies would be organized in almost every divisional headquarters, he added.
When asked about the ongoing negotiations with Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, he said that “Dr Tahirul Qadri has the authority to take decisions.” Ahsan Iqbal had recently held a few meetings with PAT senior leader Raheeq Abbasi.
On the other hand, the talks between the PAT and opposition Jirga headed by Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq had hit deadlock. The last meeting between the two sides had taken place 20 days ago at the residence of former interior minister Rehman Malik.
According to sources, the PAT had asked the government for release of its arrested workers before the end of its sit-in and had sought guarantee in the form of an executive order but the government insisted that PAT workers would be released once the sit-in is ended.
Responding to a question, he said that PAT chief Dr Tahirul Qadri would celebrate his Eid along with the workers at the sit-in encampment. “Arrangements for Eid are being made,” he added.
To another question, Khan said that though the government had made several regulations and has not allowed us to bring sacrificial animals at the D-Chowk they would manage things. “The government had made special arrangements so that PAT workers could not manage to reach Islamabad and join the PAT sit-in but it failed. Similarly their measures would not work and stop us from celebrating our Eid here at D-Chowk,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 6th, 2014.
The Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) denied on Sunday it had announced rallies in big cities of the country in collaboration with its ‘political cousin’, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
A senior PAT leader told The Express Tribune that PAT chief Dr Tahirul Qadri had announced to hold rallies in Faisalabad and Lahore but they had nothing to do with the PTI. The decision, according to insiders, was taken following PTI’s rallies in several cities organized to put more pressure on the government.
The PTI and PAT had started their anti-government marches on August 14 while highlighting allegations of rigging in the 2013 general elections and killing of the 14 PAT workers in Model Town Lahore, respectively.
Both parties also entered the high security red zone despite barricades and are continuing their sit-ins in front of the Parliament House at D-Chowk of the Constitution Avenue.
The PAT would be holding a rally in Faisalabad on October 12 and another in Lahore on October 19. Both cities are known as the strongholds of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). However, the date for Karachi rally has not been finalized yet.
“The PAT chief had asked senior office-bearers to go back to their homes and make arrangements for the rallies,” said Naveed Khan, chief of his own faction of Muslim League and an ally of the PAT.
Responding to a question, he said there was no consultation with the PTI before the announcement of rallies in the major cities of the country was made. The rallies would be organized in almost every divisional headquarters, he added.
When asked about the ongoing negotiations with Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, he said that “Dr Tahirul Qadri has the authority to take decisions.” Ahsan Iqbal had recently held a few meetings with PAT senior leader Raheeq Abbasi.
On the other hand, the talks between the PAT and opposition Jirga headed by Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq had hit deadlock. The last meeting between the two sides had taken place 20 days ago at the residence of former interior minister Rehman Malik.
According to sources, the PAT had asked the government for release of its arrested workers before the end of its sit-in and had sought guarantee in the form of an executive order but the government insisted that PAT workers would be released once the sit-in is ended.
Responding to a question, he said that PAT chief Dr Tahirul Qadri would celebrate his Eid along with the workers at the sit-in encampment. “Arrangements for Eid are being made,” he added.
To another question, Khan said that though the government had made several regulations and has not allowed us to bring sacrificial animals at the D-Chowk they would manage things. “The government had made special arrangements so that PAT workers could not manage to reach Islamabad and join the PAT sit-in but it failed. Similarly their measures would not work and stop us from celebrating our Eid here at D-Chowk,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 6th, 2014.