Says opponents scare of elections | Alleges police wanted to kill or arrest him from Islamabad court | Says will be filing case against all policemen who broke into his house, CM, IGP
\n LAHORE
\nFormer prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan Sunday announced that his party would stage a power show at Minar-e-Pakistan on Wednesday (March 22), calling it a \u2018referendum\u2019 on where the nation stood.
\nThe former premier made these remarks while addressing the party workers and supporters a day after clashes erupted at his Zaman Park residence and at Islamabad judicial complex where he appeared before a trial court in the Toshakhana case.
\n\u201cWe will stage a power show at Minar-e-Pakistan on Wednesday, and it will be a referendum on where the nation stands and where the gang of thieves and their handlers stand,\u201d Imran Khan said.
\nThe PTI Chairman strongly criticised the police operation at his residence in Lahore\u2019s Zaman Park, vowing to take legal action against law enforcers who \u2018barged into house\u2019.
\nImran Khan further said that the entire nation knew that he always respected the law, claiming that 96 cases had been registered against him. \u201cWhenever I leave the house, more cases are registered against me,\u201d he added.
\nHe also accused the coalition government of planning the assassination attempt against him in Wazirabad.
\nRecalling the incidents of the past couple of weeks, Imran Khan noted that his party decided to initiate its election campaign by holding a rally in Lahore on March 8 after elections in Punjab were announced for April 30.
\nHowever, he said, on the day of the gathering they started installing containers and imposed Section 144. \u201cHow can authorities imposed Section 144 after the announcement of the elections date,\u201d he questioned.
\nThe PTI chief said that when the rally started moving towards Zaman Park, police used water cannons and tear gas against PTI workers. Subsequently, he said he decided to call off his rally because he was afraid of chaos.
\n\u201cThey had the plan to kill me or arrest me during his visit to Islamabad to appear before the court day before yesterday. The government and its backers are scared of elections because so far in the last eight months, out of the 37 by-elections, my party has won 30 out of them,\u201d added Imran Khan.
\nThe former prime minister said that the incumbent government is utilizing all tactics to postpone the elections. \u201cThe coalition government want to throw me in Balochistan jail so I am unable to hold campaign for the upcoming elections,\u201d he claimed.
\nSpeaking of the police operation at Zaman Park, he said that a heavy contingent of police arrived at his Lahore residence over warrants issued by a magistrate. \u201cRangers arrived in armoured vehicles and jumped over walls,\u201d he added.
\nHe said that the police plundered and looted my house in his absence. \u201cIs this the job of the police to loot the valuables of a family?\u201d Imran Khan said that he was ready to hand himself over to the police but PTI workers stopped him from doing so. \u201cYesterday, when I left my house, I said my goodbyes to my wife. I knew that I would either be arrested or killed,\u201d he noted.
\nThe PTI chief further said that when he reached the toll plaza, police closed down the motorway. \u201cThey had in mind that once my car leaves, they will close it behind me so that rest of the cars cannot follow,\u201d he added.
\nHe alleged that when he was at the gate of Islamabad judicial complex, police also started beating the workers surrounding the car. \u201cThey were waiting for me to step out of the car and then kill me,\u201d he added.
\nMeanwhile, he said, law enforcers broke down the gate of his residence in Lahore\u2019s Zaman Park while only his wife, Bushra Bibi, and few servants were present. He alleged that officials carrying out the operation \u201clooted\u201d his home.
\n\u201cI want to ask police officers, army officers, judges, the public, how could anyone enter a private residence when a religious, non-political, veiled woman is home alone? How would these officers feel if it happened to them?\u201d Imran questioned.
\nHe alleged that the security forces looted his house in the name of a search, violated high court orders of sending just two officers for the purpose.
\nImran then declared that he would be filing a case against every single officer who broke into his house, and moving the Lahore High Court for contempt. He announced that he would be filing cases against Mohsin Naqvi and the police chief for murder of Zille Shah and Saturday\u2019s operation at Zaman Park.
\n\u201cThey are now covering up everything through their favorite chief minister, Mohsin Naqvi, who calls Zardari his father,\u201d he claimed. He also lashed out at the Election Commission of Pakistan for selecting such a \u201cbiased\u201d interim government and chief minister for such vengeful tactics.
\nImran then asked his young supporters to \u201cwake up\u201d, or they would be responsible for the destruction of the country. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Says opponents scare of elections | Alleges police wanted to kill or arrest him from Islamabad court | Says will be filing case against all policemen who broke into his house, CM, IGP LAHORE Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan Sunday announced that his party would stage a power show at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":320543,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-320525","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n