Friday 19 / April / 2024
Islamabad: Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan accused the government of placing him under virtual house arrest in Islamabad on Friday as his supporters in nearby Rawalpindi fought running battles with the police.
Police tear-gassed and baton-charged the rock-throwing protesters in Rawalpindi, 20km (12 miles) from Islamabad, as both sides prepared for his plan to shut down the capital next week to try to force Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to resign.
There was no immediate report of injuries and the violence eased as darkness fell, but a handful of protesters defying a ban on public gatherings continued to clash with police. Police also fired tear gas and briefly clashed with protesters near Khan's house in Islamabad.
The protests added to rising political tension ahead of Khan's vow to lock down the capital on Wednesday to try to force Sharif to quit because of corruption allegations. The political strife has come at an awkward time for Sharif, as relations between his ruling PML-N party and the powerful military have been strained by a newspaper leak about a security meeting that angered army officials.
Khan, a former cricket hero, told reporters outside his home that he had been placed "under almost house arrest" by scores of police officers stationed around his home in Islamabad. He said he had cancelled plans to attend a rally by a political ally in Rawalpindi and urged supporters to instead focus on the mass protests on Wednesday.
"To all my activists, you have to prepare for November 2, you have to escape capture," he said.
Khan called for nationwide protests on Friday after 38 activists from his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party were arrested a day earlier during a raid by baton-wielding police on an indoor youth rally in Islamabad. Police said the rally contravened a city order issued hours earlier that banned all public gatherings in Islamabad and Rawalpindi ahead of next week's protests.
