Maverick politician and Tahreek-ek-Insaf chief Imran Khan and cleric Tahirul Qadri, who have been leading an anti-government protest in Pakistan for quite some weeks, have been booked on terrorism charges according to The Dawn.
Maverick politician and Tahreek-ek-Insaf chief Imran Khan and cleric Tahirul Qadri, who have been leading an anti-government protest in Pakistan for quite some weeks, have been booked on terrorism charges according to The Dawn.
The news came as hundreds of anti-government protestors in Pakistan stormed the office of state broadcaster on Monday as fresh deadly clashes broke out in Islamabad.
Protesters armed with rocks and wooden clubs earlier clashed with police, hours after the powerful army called for a peaceful settlement of the ongoing political crisis in the country.
The main Pakistani Television (PTV) channel’s transmission was cut after an anchor announced demonstrators had entered the building and “besieged” staff. Private news channels showed live pictures of protesters shouting slogans and barging into recording studios and smashing equipment.
However, the transmission was restored after security forces arrived and peacefully escorted the demonstrators out of the building.
Protesters loyal to Khan and Qadri want Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to resign on charges of corruption and electoral fraud.
On Sunday night protesters used trucks to smash through the outer fence of the parliament building, even though the building was guarded by troops. Demonstrators have been taking part in a sit-in in the centre of the capital for two weeks.
Protests had been peaceful until Saturday, when violence broke out. The protests turned deadly as thousands of demonstrators – some wielding batons and throwing stones – moved on the main building housing Pakistan’s federal bureaucracy and Prime Minister’s House.
Protesters started by heading toward the prime minister’s residence.
When the crowd started removing shipping containers used as barricades, police fired salvos of tear gas that forced the crowds back. Police also fired rubber bullets to disperse the protesters outside the PM’s residence.
Protesters attacked vehicles and set fire to shipping containers placed on the street as roadblocks. Riot police were forced to retreat from the main road in front of parliament, Constitution Avenue.
The protesters started regrouping at daybreak on Sunday and made repeated attempts to make their way through heavy deployment of police and barricades to reach the premier’s residence. Police strengthened their lines and responded by lobbing tear gas canisters.
Nearly 400 people — including women, children and police officers — were admitted to local hospitals
Both Khan and Qadri stayed overnight at the protests, spending most of their time in the containers that they have been living in for days.
Khan called for demonstrations across Pakistan and described the police actions against the crowd as illegal. He, for his part, vowed to fight “till my last breath”. “I request the nation, civil servants, bureaucrats and police, to rebel against this illegal government,” Khan told supporters. “I am prepared to die fighting for the freedom for my people. Allah, ya azaadi ya maut (Allah, either freedom or death).”
Qadri said he’d been up all night praying and monitoring the situation. “If they think their brutality will force us back, they are wrong,” he said in a choked voice.
While trying to stay neutral in the current scenario, the Pakistani army has said it “remains committed to playing its part in ensuring security of the state and will never fall short of meeting national aspirations”. The army has indicated it will not intervene to save Sharif.
Sharif has called for a joint sitting of parliament on Tuesday to discuss the crisis.
