The interior ministry on Thursday wrote to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary to ensure that state machinery, equipment or finances were not used for PTI’s power show planned for November 24 (Sunday).
PTI founder and ex-premier Imran Khan issued a “final call” for the Sunday protest last week, denouncing what he described as the stolen mandate, the unjust arrests of people, and the passage of the 26th Constitutional Amendment, which he said has strengthened a “dictatorial regime”.
Since Imran’s arrest in August 2023 on several counts, his party has been holding protests across the country for his release and against the alleged rigging of the Feb 8 elections.
Thursday’s letter to Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, stated “Protest call on November 24” as its subject, specifying the PTI as the organiser later.
It asked Chaudhry to ensure that the KP government “does not utilise state machinery, equipment, officials or finances for political protest by the political party”.
The interior ministry’s directives come a day after the government approved the deployment of both Pakistan Rangers and Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel in Islamabad from November 22 onwards to “handle” the law and order situation, ahead of the planned power show.
The notification said the exact number of personnel and the date and area of their deployment would be “worked out in consultation with concerned stakeholders”. Similarly, the date of de-requisitioning would be decided after mutually consulting all relevant stakeholders.
The federal and Punjab governments have decided to take strict measures to deal with the PTI’s call. The police have been placed on “high alert” throughout Punjab while Section 144 has been extended in the federal capital for two more months, in addition to heavy security arrangements.
The government’s concerns about the usage of state machinery emerged when last month, around two dozen KP cops were among 1,000 PTI supporters arrested by the Rawalpindi and Islamabad police during the PTI’s October 5 D-Chowk protest.
Following a simultaneous protest in Punjab, the Attock police had also arrested as many as 11 KP policemen who were participating in the PTI’s march.
Sources had told Dawn that more than 40 Rescue 1122 vehicles and 120 of its personnel accompanied the PTI procession coming from Peshawar to Islamabad for the rally. The Punjab police had arrested 41 of the rescue personnel and took into possession 17 of the vehicles.
Law enforcement agencies have planned to “lay a virtual siege” to the garrison city by sealing it from 50 points to prevent PTI workers from entering the federal capital territory on November 24.
A senior police official confirmed that the Rawalpindi will be sealed from 50 points with freight shipping containers, razors and barbed wires as the district police, including Elite Force commandos, will be deployed and nobody will be allowed to stage any protest.
PTI’s central information secretary Sheikh Waqqas Akram has asserted that despite alleged offers for talks with the ‘powers that be’, the party’s planned power show would proceed until their goals are achieved.
He said the PTI would continue its preparations for the protest even if negotiations about their demands were initiated. “Khan sahib has issued clear instructions to continue preparations for the protest until our goals are achieved,” he added.
On the other hand, police have launched a crackdown on PTI local leaders and workers which began on Tuesday night and have so far rounded up more than 30 workers and activists.
Police have been considering avoiding using water cannons and rubber bullets against the PTI protesters, if they try to engage the police in any part of the city. The main showdown is expected to take place in Attock district — the border area of KP and Punjab.
