Towards the end of September, PTI canceled its planned rally in Rawalpindi and announced a protest instead. In response, the relevant administration implemented security measures, one of the most significant being the suspension of the metro service. As a result, metro buses, a crucial and affordable means of transportation between Rawalpindi and Islamabad, were halted, severely affecting thousands of passengers who commute between the twin cities. Those who needed to travel had to resort to other means like buses, taxis, bike-sharing services, or other available options, often at inflated prices. Since the protest was held on a Saturday, government employees in the twin cities remained unaffected, but ordinary people suffered as private transport service providers took advantage of the situation and charged exorbitant fares from desperate travelers.
While political parties have the constitutional right to hold protests and rallies, PTI’s founder, after his government was ousted, has been organizing rallies not for political purposes but for his release and to escape legal cases. PTI has already held rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad, and Lahore as part of this campaign.
During the Islamabad rally, the aggressive and controversial speech by the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa led to his eight-hour detention. Several PTI leaders were also arrested, including some members of parliament. The Speaker of the National Assembly took action over these arrests, ordering their production in the house, which was within the constitutional authority of the PML-N Speaker. In contrast, during the PTI government, then-Speaker Asad Qaiser did not exercise this authority, as he was strictly instructed by the then-Prime Minister not to issue any production orders for opposition members of parliament. The Speaker, obedient to the party leader, lacked the courage to inform the Prime Minister that it was necessary to summon elected representatives to parliament. Asad Qaiser also did not follow the example of Gohar Ayub, father of PTI leader and Federal Minister Omar Ayub, who was a former Speaker of the National Assembly. Omar Ayub himself did not advise the government to bring the arrested members to the house.
Now that the PTI government has ended, its leaders suddenly remember the right to protest, which they ignored while in power. They seem oblivious to the absence of PML-N and PPP parliamentarians from the National Assembly during their government. These included current Prime Minister and then-opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif, Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Rana Sanaullah, Khawaja Asif, Khursheed Shah, and others who were elected representatives but were not summoned to the house because the Speaker knew that if they were allowed to speak, they would protest against government oppression and shout “selected, selected” in the presence of the Prime Minister—something that was intolerable for the government.
Punjab’s Information Minister commented on PTI’s protest in Rawalpindi, stating that the country’s current situation does not warrant protests and rallies, as this could escalate political tensions and lead to unpleasant incidents. She accused PTI of trying to create conditions where they could benefit politically from any casualties. She also claimed that the people of Rawalpindi, like those in Lahore, have rejected PTI, and the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would not succeed in disrupting peace in Rawalpindi by bringing crowds from his province. However, the Punjab government will not let PTI’s plans for chaos succeed.
Despite elections having already been held earlier this year in February, similar to 2018, and there being no signs or need for fresh elections, PTI’s founder has announced a series of protests to demand his release. In cities where PTI plans to hold rallies or protests, if the government imposes Section 144 or a ban and denies permission, the judiciary often favors PTI and orders the local administration to allow the events. The real victims, however, are the public, who bear the brunt of administrative measures. Like previous governments, the current one tries to prevent opposition protests initially and then, under the pretext of public safety, resorts to blocking roads with police and containers. This has happened in Rawalpindi as well, where clashes occurred in some areas, leading to tear gas shelling.
According to the KP spokesperson, PTI has launched a protest campaign to secure the release of its founder. This protest is, in a way, against judicial decisions since only the courts can order someone’s release, and the government can only act based on such orders. The KP Chief Minister, who vowed to free their leader from Adiala Jail within 15 days, used state resources to orchestrate the “Day of Protest” in Rawalpindi, which the world witnessed. The KP spokesperson claims that the final phase of the movement for their leader’s release has begun, with the Chief Minister of KP leading a march towards Punjab. Songs in support of Khan, played during the KP protest, contributed significantly to fueling animosity. The closure of the Peshawar Motorway disrupted transport between the two provinces, leaving the general public—not PTI—bearing the brunt of the protests and rallies, as has been the case for a long time.