Saif slams use of force against PTI workers

PESHAWAR: Adviser to Chief Minister on Information Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif on Friday condemned the federal and Punjab governments for the alleged use of force against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers heading for D-Chowk to stage the protest.

He expressed concern over the current political situation in the country and said Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN) was making every effort to save its rule, which he termed illegitimate.

“Firing shots at peaceful protesters is an act against democracy,” Saif said, adding that the PMLN government had left no stone unturned in turning a peaceful protest violent but vowed to make oppressors accountable.

Barrister Saif felt that the rule of Shehbaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz was in the final days, as the public would no longer tolerate this tyranny.He came down hard on the federal and Punjab governments after accusing them of using state machinery by firing at unarmed protesters and tear-gassing them.

“All this has proven that this government is not a representative of the people but is merely prolonging rule to continue robbing the exchequer,” he added.He was satisfied with the response of the PTI workers to the protest call by the PTI founder and said it was heeded by people from across the country.

Barrister Saif accused PMLN of being afraid of peaceful protesters and placing spikes on the Motorway-1 near Swabi to stop the PTI workers from proceeding to the federal capital.“The public has risen to hold accountable those rulers who had stolen their mandate, and PMLN is using violence and state apparatus to suppress peaceful protests,” he added.

He alleged that PMLN had plotted to cause casualties during the protest. Barrister Saif accused the federal government of deliberately trying to turn a peaceful protest into a violent one. Responding to Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s statement, the KP government spokesman said that the claim that the police were peaceful was a lie.

He added that the peaceful citizens were being subjected to state oppression, with excessive use of tear gas and rubber bullets.Barrister Saif was critical of the federal government for arresting the sister of the PTI founder, Aleema Khan in Islamabad and that of other party workers.