By Chathushka Perera
ISTANBUL, Pakistan (CWBN)_ Despite the malicious arrest of MP Mohammad Safdar, the abduction of Sindh’s police chief and a threat alert issued by the Pakistan National Counter-Terrorism Authority (NACTA), the third anti-government rally was held in Quetta, Balochistan, on Sunday (25th October).
The security alert was issued by the government authorities following a bombing that took place in the region on the same day as the rally, near the Shalkot Police Station, leaving four dead and two wounded.
High profile figures including, Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President, Maryam Nawaz, President of the Jaimat Ulema-e-Islam, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, attended the gathering amid tight security, while Chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Former Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted following a Supreme Court ruling, addressed the rally via video conferencing.
Rehman said that the government is gradually taking steps to revoke the powers granted to the people through the 18th Constitutional Amendment and the autonomy of Pakistan’s provinces. He also spoke against the government’s attempts to remove and embarrass Supreme Court Judge, Quazi Faez Isa, following an announcement that Isa would be made Chief Justice in 2023, and in support of the Supreme Court decision to quash the case made against Isa on Friday (23rd October).
In 2019, bench of 10 Supreme Court Judges dismissed a presidential reference that Isa’s wife and children held undisclosed foreign properties, however, the case was not closed. Last month, Isa’s spouse, Sarina Isa, was forced to produce her financial statements before the Federal Board of Revenue as required by a 7-3 Supreme Court Order, permitting a probe.
Isa came under fire from PM Imran Khan and his government after taking a hard-line against Pakistan’s powerful armed forces, which is notorious for its long governance of the country and its ongoing encroachments on civil procedures.
Adding to the escalating crisis, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Communication, Shahbaz Gill, claimed that the Opposition had “orchestrated a drama” around the Safdar arrest in order to disrupt relationships between government institutions. He added that the incident was blown up by Indian propaganda in an effort to diminish Pakistan before the intentional community, and targeting the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and the armed forces.
Edited by Elishya Perera
