LAHORE - PTI leaders have said their workers have been hounded by the lawmen and some arrests have also been made though they have not given the names of detainees.
Clashes between police and PTI activists continued in twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, against the undeclared detention of Imran Khan and top party leaders at Bani Gala.
In the result of police action on the convention of Insaaf Student Federation in Islamabad on Thursday, Imran Khan gave a call for countrywide protests which was responded by the party activists across Punjab, Khyber Pukhtunkhawa and Sindh yesterday.
PTI second-line leaders and dozens of workers staged protest across Punjab. In provincial capital Imran Khan followers held major protest demonstrations in front of Lahore Press Club, Mozang Chowk, Bopatian Chowk Thokar Niaz Baig, Babu Sabu, Lalik Jan Chowk Defence and Mall Road.
The protesters were holding placards and banners inscribed with slogans “Go Nawaz Go and Nawaz Sharif present yourself accountability”. They also burnt tires and blocked the roads of the protest venues for some time and later dispersed.
PTI Punjab leader Ijaz Chaudhary, who is part of PTI foot march (Paidal March) to Islamabad, told The Nation through phone that an attempt has been made to arrest him at the residence of a party leader in Gujranwala where he stopped for refreshments on Friday.
However, Ijaz managed his escape from the backdoor and continued the foot march towards Islamabad along with other members of the party.
The PTI leaders claimed that two civilian intelligence agencies are also working round the clock to save the government from Imran Khan’s threat.
With PTI protests across the province and preparations for November 2 lockdown of Islamabad, official sources told The Nation, lists of PTI activists connected with mobilisation and other planning of Islamabad lockdown plan have been forwarded to the offices of the two civilian intelligence services starting from division down to the level of district and tehsil to execute detention plan when directed.
The lists have the names of nearly 5000 PTI activists including parliamentarians, office bearers, former ticket holders, district leaders and key workers mobilising the activists for Islamabad lockdown plan.
Monitoring cells in the two civilian intelligence services have been working round the clock to keep an eye on the PTI activists making bids for mobilisation for Islamabad lockdown plan, disclosed the official sources.
There are informants of the two agencies among Imran Khan party circles who are also assisting the two regarding changing plans of the party leadership starting from senior level down to district, the sources claimed.
Similarly, some of the PTI leaders requesting anonymity said that they are also getting information from their sympathisers in the government and the civilian agencies which help to reshape their strategy for November 2.
The government has planned to seal the borders between KPK and Punjab on the night of November 1 in a bid to stop the PTI activists from reaching Islamabad, claimed Imran’s party leaders quoting their sympathisers in civilian agencies’ ranks.
Similarly, the party top leadership has the information of massive detentions plan of the government at respective districts of five-category party list of the civilian agencies to be executed by the police as soon as they get go-head, they added.
At the same time, official sources told The Nation that the civilian agencies have the information reached them from their informants in Imran’s party that PTI Punjab leaders and key workers under a new strategy have been directed to reach Islamabad in small groups well before November 2 and surface on the day of lockdown.
While the KPK leaders have been directed to amass large crowds for march on Islamabad and launch the campaign in a ‘single go’ and remove all containers at Attock bridge and hurdles onwards up to Islamabad on November 2 come what may, they added.