World News | Imran Khan's Party Supporters Arrested Across Punjab Province for Protest Against Rigging in Pak Polls

Lahore, Mar 10 (PTI) Dozens of Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's party supporters were arrested on Sunday in different cities of Punjab province for staging "peaceful" protests against alleged rigging in the polls and the "fake election" of the prime minister and the president.

In several videos circulating on social media platforms, police can be seen manhandling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers, including children and the elderly.

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The policemen were seen dragging the PTI workers carrying party flags. In one such clip, policemen were seen trying to break into a car with kids inside who were seen terrorised.

The police even did not spare the PTI-backed lawmakers, including Latif Khosa, Farhat Abbas and Mian Tariq, and arrested them for attending the protesting rallies. Police also arrested Imran Khan's lawyer Salman Akram Raja in Lahore.

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Most of the arrests were made in Lahore, Faisalabad, Vehari and Multan. In Rawalpindi, police also stopped the PTI workers from entering Islamabad and arrested several workers.

The PTI strongly condemned the Punjab police's "brutality".

"Attacking a car with children inside shows police brutality. It is absolutely disgusting and unacceptable behaviour,” it said.

“Shame on Thief Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz whose government is crossing all limits of fascism," it said and asked "why is the mandate thief CM so scared of peaceful protest by PTI?"

The PTI said this desperation of the PML-N puppet government shows how much it is scared of peaceful protests by Imran Khan's supporters.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, a few days ago, had warned the PTI against resorting to ‘violent protest', declaring that she would be ‘ruthless' if it dared to take the law into its hands on the pretext of politics.

“The opposition (PTI) is in a state of mourning and they (PTI leaders) are not in their right frame of mind at the moment. They have a defeated mindset. They want to create anarchy, polarisation and instability in the country," Maryam, the daughter of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, said.

“But let me tell them that if they try to create a law and order situation on the pretext of doing politics, I will be ruthless. I have zero tolerance for them to create problems for the public,” she asserted.

Maryam earlier faced strong criticism for the torturing of PTI workers during a peaceful protest in Lahore last week against the “massive rigging” in the February polls.

One of the protesters is said to be admitted to ICU because of alleged police torture and his condition is still critical.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)