ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) has decided in principle to call off the sit-in from D-Chowk Islamabad and a decision in this regard is likely to be announced after PAT’s Lahore public rally, a senior leader of PAT disclosed to The News. In the first stage, PAT rolled 500 tents erected in front of Parliament House calling it a “security risk” hence giving control of the area to the police. Analysts believe that PAT’s calling off the dharna would be fetal for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Dharna as it is totally dependent upon PAT’s strength. Spokesman and senior leader of PAT Umar Riaz Abbasi while talking to The News said that PAT had taken revolution at the doorsteps of people while continuing its sit-in on the Constitution Avenue and PAT might call off the dharna but any decision in this regard would be made after Dr Tahirul Qadri’s Lahore rally. On the other hand, a senior leader of PAT said that with the joint dharna held by Dr Tahirul Qadri and Imran Khan on the Constitution Avenue, the entire strength was of PAT but the media and the public at large only gave importance to PTI thus showing PAT as a secondary party of the two protesting against the government. “Dr Tahirul Qadri offered Imran Khan to form a joint venture against the government which was rejected by Khan” said the PAT leader adding: “It was then decided to hold public rallies and mobilise people by visiting their hometowns instead of sitting on the Constitution Avenue.” The spokesman of PAT Umar Riaz Abbasi said that the sit-in could be called off because Dr Tahirul Qadri was getting overwhelming response from the public as he, recently visiting Jhang district, noted that every gathering was historic and mammoth crowd turned up to be part of revolution. “As of today, the PAT dharna is very much there on the Constitution Avenue and the party has itself rolled up the 500 tents because they were a security risk for the dharna. People have been sent back to their respective cities to make arrangements for Dr Qadri’s public rallies,” said the PAT leader. He added that people from Faisalabad and Lahore had been sent back to their towns and a decision to call off dharna would be made after Lahore’s rally which would be held on October 19. The PAT leader while replying to a question said that the results of public mobilisation were better and healthy for PAT. Instead of sitting on the Constitution Avenue, the party may announce to call off the sit-in but not the revolution, he added.
