Hammad Azhar, a leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), stated on Sunday that his father was detained by the police for attempting to hold an election rally in Lahore ahead of the February 8 elections.
Mian Azhar, the 82-year-old former Punjab governor, intended to lead the rally exercising his democratic and constitutional rights, as mentioned in Azhar’s statement on social media.
My 82 year old father arrested. He wanted to lead a rally as per his democratic and constitutional right. Pakistan has today been reduced to a total fascist state with zero human rights or rule of law. One Nawaz Sharif & his daughter calling the shots and ruining the country. pic.twitter.com/BEdx5EX60h
— Hammad Azhar (@Hammad_Azhar) January 28, 2024
Azhar accused the current state of Pakistan of becoming a fascist regime with no regard for human rights or the rule of law, alleging that the control of the country lies with Nawaz Sharif and his daughter.
Farid Paracha, a leader of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), condemned the arrest of the former Punjab governor, describing Mian Azhar as a senior politician and a figure worthy of respect.
The incident occurred amid heightened campaigning for the upcoming polls, with less than two weeks remaining before the general elections.
Both PTI and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) have complained of being denied a fair opportunity to participate in the elections.
The PTI, led by Imran Khan and currently in incarceration, faced a setback earlier in the month when the Supreme Court upheld the Election Commission of Pakistan’s decision to revoke its iconic bat electoral symbol due to unconstitutional intra-party polls.
Recently, the Punjab provincial government imposed Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure across the province due to security concerns leading up to the February 8 general elections.
Under Section 144, there is a complete ban on the display of weapons and aerial firing in Punjab, the most populous province and the political hub of the country.
Additionally, the enforcement of the ECP code of conduct for the upcoming polls falls under the purview of the imposed law, according to the notification issued by the provincial home department.
The notification cited security threats, potential terrorism, and conflicts among election candidates during the ongoing campaigning as reasons for imposing Section 144.
The imposed Section 144 will remain effective until February 12, with authorities prepared to take action against any violations.
With 2023 marked as one of the worst years in terms of terrorism incidents since 2015, concerns loom over the security and safety of both candidates and voters during the forthcoming elections in Pakistan.
