Achakzai accuses the government of resorting to “vengeful measures even against women and children”
ISLAMABAD:
Senior leaders of Tehreek Tahaffuz Aeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) on Wednesday deplored the alleged mistreatment of the imprisoned sisters of PTI founder Imran Khan outside Adiala Jail, expressing complete solidarity with them.
In a joint press conference after meeting them in Bani Gala, the opposition alliance expressed serious concerns about the country’s political climate, the future of democracy and the “repeated violations of constitutional limits.”
PTI leaders including Salman Akram Raja and Shahid Khattak, as well as the former prime minister’s sisters, were also present.
Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen Pakistan (MWM) Central President Allama Raja Nasir Abbas Jafri termed the alleged assault on the sisters of the PTI founder outside Adiala Jail as “tragic and inhumane”.
He was concerned that the prevailing political situation had put not only the masses but also the “guardians of the Constitution” in a state of deep anxiety.
“The person who founded Pakistan would be ashamed of the current situation,” invoking the country’s founder, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Referring to the 27th Amendment, he warned that hastily pushed constitutional adjustments risked weakening the state structure, adding that the TTAP had “serious reservations” about the changes underway.
Similarly, the head of the movement, Mehmood Khan Achakzai, accused the government of resorting to “vindictive measures even against women and children”, saying they were shameful and unprecedented.
Furthermore, he deplored the “manifest and undemocratic violations of human rights.” “It was because of elite mentality that East Pakistan was shattered, and today the same attitudes are once again pushing the state towards harm.”
Achakzai emphasized that the country’s crisis could only be resolved if all political forces adopted a joint and principled position.
He announced that if all parties agreed on five key points, he would personally get Imran Khan to formally sign them.
‘Not intimidated’
PTI founder Aleema Khan’s sisters, Uzma Khan and Noreen Khan, also spoke at the press conference, condemning the alleged violence against women and stating that they would not be intimidated.
They thanked the TTAP leadership and said the support of Achakzai and Allama Nasir Abbas Jafri had given them strength during an exceptionally difficult time.
Delivering Imran’s message, the sisters stated that Imran has urged the nation to “get ready” because the time has come for “freedom or death”, while accusing the authorities of putting him in solitary confinement and subjecting women, children and legislators to violent treatment outside Adiala Jail.
They further said that they had long avoided speaking in public, but that the situation had reached a point where silence was no longer possible.
Aleema said they were only exercising their legal right to demand a meeting with his brother, but “the PTI founder has been placed in solitary confinement” and even peaceful protests were met with force.
He said his protests had never harmed anyone, but they were repeatedly denied permission to meet with him. “Last week, my sister, who is a doctor, was detained for several hours,” he said.
“We were sitting on the sidewalk. First they turned off the lights, then they released water. We sat in the water. First they pushed the journalists, then the KP ministers,” he recounted scenes from Tuesday night.
He said a 12-year-old boy who warned them they would release water “was also arrested.”
He claimed that the women had been “dragged by the hair” and “their shawls taken off”, after which men and women were “locked together in the same prison van”.
“This country is ours too. Why are they treating us like this?” she asked.
