WAZIRABAD/LAHORE/ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)
Chairman Imran Khan and over
a dozen members of his party were injured in a gun attack
during the long March in Wazirabad on Thursday.
Police investigators said several shots were fired at the ctainer-mounted-truck carrying Imran Khan, who is said to
be out of danger. A 35-year-old
party worker succumbed to bullet injuries on the way to hospital, police said. The gunman was
overpowered by the protesters
and handed over to the police
after a good thrash.
According to police, the firing incident took place near Allah Wala Chowk in Wazirabad
when the protest march was
moving towards Islamabad. As a
result, Imran Khan and 13 other
PTI members including Senator
Faisal Javed, Umar Dar, and Ahmad Chatha sustained injuries.
All the injured were shifted to a
nearby hospital instantly.
A police spokesman said that
after the incident, PTI chief Imran Khan was also shifted to a
hospital.
“One suspect involved in the
firing incident was arrested.
Further investigation was under
way,” the spokesman said. The
police identified the deceased
as Moazzam, son of Nawaz.
Chaotic scenes broke out near
Imran Khan’s reception camp
at Allah Wala Chowk after gunshots were fired. The incident,
about 200 km from Islamabad,
brought back chilling memories
of how former prime minister
Benazir Bhutto was shot dead
during a rally in 2007.
One of the gunmen arrested
after the attack on Imran Khan
told officials that he had come
to assassinate the former Pakistan Prime Minister. “Imran
Khan is misleading people,” he
says.During investigation, one
of the two gunmen involved in
the attacked during a rally in Pakistan’s Punjab says that he shot
Imran Khan as the former Pakistan PM was misleading people.
Footage circulating on social
media shows a gunman opened
fire when Imran Khan, 70, was
leading a protest rally in Punjab’s Wazirabad. Khan was
rushed away from the scene to
hospital and his supporters said
he had survived the “assassination attempt.”
The former cricketer – who
has been pushing for new elections after being ousted from
power in April – has been delivering fiery speeches at gatherings across the country. He was
six days into a march from Lahore to Islamabad in his drive
to bring early elections to the
country, pushing for radical
change, when the shooting took
place.
“Imran Khan and Faisal Javed
received bullet wounds. A bullet hit Imran Khan’s shin. Both
have been taken to hospital for
treatment,” said PTI spokesman
Fawad Chaudhry.
Javed, who had blood stains
on his clothes, told TV channels from the hospital: “Several of our colleagues are wounded. We heard that one of them is
dead.” Officials said the gunman
had been arrested at the scene.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the shooting and
has ordered an immediate investigation.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif
Thursday strongly condemned
the firing at Chairman Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf Imran Khan in
Gujranwala and assured support to Punjab government on
investigation and security.
Shehbaz Sharif directed the
Interior Minister for an immediate report into the incident
and assured the support of the
Punjab government for security
and investigation. “Federal government will extend all support
necessary to Punjab government for security and investigation,” he said. He stressed that
“violence should have no place
in our country’s politics”.
Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhary Parvez Elahi also took
strict notice of firing at PTI
Chairman Imran Khan’s container during the Long March
near Wazirabad.
Seeking a report from IG Police Faisal Shahkaar, he directed
to arrest the culprits and provide best possible medical care
to the injured. Meanwhile, IG
Punjab Police Faisal Shahkaar
ordered DPO Gujrat to reach the
spot immediately and launch a
detailed probe into incident.
Federal interior minister Rana
Sana Ullah Thursday said that
the Punjab government should
constitute a Joint Investigation
Team (JIT) at the earliest to investigate the matter thoroughly.
“Today’s unfortunate firing incident requires a high-level investigation as it is a matter of grave
concern. Therefore, the Punjab
government should constitute a
JIT at the earliest to investigate
the matter thoroughly,” the interior minister tweeted.
While talking to reporters,
Advisor to Chief Minister Punjab on Home and Information
Omer Sarfraz Cheema said that
an accused opened fire at PTI
Chief Imran Khan’s container near Allah Wala Chowk, Wazirabad when the march was on
its way to Islamabad, injuring
Imran Khan and six PTI members including Senator Faisal
Javed, Umar Dar, Ahmad Chatha
and others, besides killing one,
Moazam.
He said that after the incident,
PTI Chief Imran Khan was shifted to a hospital, where he was
undergoing medical treatment,
adding that Imran Khan’s health
was stable but a medical board
led by senior doctors was examining the injuries.
To a question, he said that
foolproof security arrangements including layer-system
were in place to provide security to the PTI’s long march, adding that investigation pertaining
to this incident was in progress.
One suspect involved in the firing incident has been arrested,
he added.
‘MOBILE PHONES OF POLICEMEN TAKEN INTO CUSTODY’
Punjab Chief Minister
Chaudhry Parvez Elahi has suspended the entire police station
team concerned including SHO
over leaking video statement of
accused arrested in firing incident on PTI chief Imran Khan’s
container.Chairing a meeting
here, the chief minister directed
the Inspector General of Police
to take legal action against the
police officials involved in leaking the video.
The chief minister directed to
hold inquiry into the incident.
He said that mobile phones of
all police officials have been
taken into custody and a forensic audit will be conducted. He
said that the facts about the video leak will be made to public. Speaker Punjab Assembly
Sibtain Khan, MPA Hafiz Ammar
Yasir, Shafqat Mehmood, Akhtar
Malik, IGP, Principal Secretary
to CM, Commissioner, Lahore
CCPO and other officers concerned attended the meeting.
Also, Punjab Chief Minister Ch
Parvez Elahi has directed the Inspector General of Police to constitute a high-level JIT to probe
the firing attack on PTI chief Iman Khan’s container. He further
directed that Counter Terrorism Department will be included in the JIT so that the motives
behind the incident can be reviewed.
The CM stated that apparently
it looked like that attacker was
not alone as there could be two
persons. “We want to know who
is behind the incident and who
trained the accused”, he added.
The chief minister said: “We
have to ascertain the motive behind the incident, who trained
this person and how much
money did he receive and from
where he was brought. It appears that first he did a practice
after coming and then injured
many people by firing”.
“We want to know with whom
the police were in contact at
that time, with whom the relatives were in contact and where
the accused parked his motorcycle”. The CM stated that the
investigation will be brought
before the media when it moved
forward and vowed to bring the
accused to their logical end.
‘IMRAN KHAN’S
CONDITION IS STABLE’
Doctor Faisal Sultan said that
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)
chairman Imran Khan was admitted to Shaukat Khanum Hospital for medical treatment after
being injured in a firing incident
during PTI’s long march in Wazirabad, on Thursday.
Talking to media here, Dr Faisal Sultan, head of medical team
constituted for treatment of Imran Khan, said the PTI chief’s
condition was stable, adding
that his blood pressure and
other vital signs were normal.
He said that Imran Khan went
through emergency evaluation which included x-rays and
scans, adding that some fragments of bullet were present in
his legs and ‘tibia’ bone of one
leg was slightly chipped from
right side.
He further told that Imran
Khan had been taken to operation theater where his detailed
evaluation would be carried
out. Dr Faisal said that after detailed evaluation, Imran Khan
would be given surgical treatment for chipped tibia bone and
removal of bullet fragments.
To a question, he said that another two injured were also
shifted to the Shaukat Khanum
Hospital and they were being
given medical treatment. He
said that a detailed statement
about Imran Khan’s condition
would be issued later. To another question, Dr Faisal said that
surgeons, orthopaedics and
other relevant specialists were
part of the medical team.
‘THREE HIGH-PROFILE
PERSONALITIES’
The PTI chairman Imran Khan
who survived a murder attempt
in a firing attack on his container on Thursday has nominated three high profile personalities which he said were involved
in the incident. In a video message, PTI’s Secretary General
Asad Umar and Provincial Minister Mian Aslam said that they
met Imran Khan in the hospital who has nominated Shehbaz
Sharif and Rana Sana Ullah besides another official as the persons involved in the attempted
murder.
Asad said that Imran Khan told
them that he had prior information about it; and on the basis of
this information, he could say
with confidence that murder
attack had been prompted by
these three persons.
Asad Umar further stated that
Imran Khan has demanded that
these three persons should be
removed from their official positions. “And if they are not removed, there would be countrywide protests, and then Pakistan
will not be facing a normal situation”, Asad Quoted Imran Khan
as having told them.
“We are going to register an
FIR nominating these three persons”, said Mian Aslam Iqbal.