Daily Times

LAHORE: Announcing the establishment of Nawaz Jaanisar Force (NJF) to protect residence of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the Punjab government spokesman has sent a six-day deadline (until September 25) to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, seeking the complete route plan of the Raiwind march.

Addressing a press conference at the Nisar Usmani Auditorium of the Lahore Press Club (LPC), Punjab government’s spokesman Zaeem Qadri warned the PTI leaders that the NJF would protect the Raiwind palace at any cost, as the PM’s wife and daughter were living there among other family members.

Interestingly, Abdul Ghani Butt alias Dulla Butt – younger brother of infamous Gullu Butt – was also present among others on the occasion. Dulla Butt – having similar getup of his brother with big moustaches – is also part of the newly formed force.

Habitually, Dulla Butt started a scuffle with some journalists and security guards of the press club due to which the press conference of the government spokesman was stopped in the middle. The club administration handed Dulla Butt over to the police. Some angry members of NJF also attacked Dulla Butt for disregarding the party and tortured him outside the club when he was being handed over to the police.

Earlier, Qadri, while addressing the press conference, asked Imran Khan that he must inform his government about his final protest plan through media and should also stop his mouth-organs on private TV channels in which he is threatening to besiege the PM’s residence.

He said that his government and the party had no fear of any type of protest from PTI if the latter would hold their rally 10 miles or more away from the Raiwind palace. However, he said that the devotees and followers of Nawaz Sharif and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) would not allow any opponent to come forward towards their leader’s residence.

It is pertinent to mention that soon after the incident, PTI leader and grandson of the National Poet Allam Iqbal, Waleed Iqbal immediately arrived the press club and showed solidarity with journalists and strongly condemned Dulla Butt’s open display of terror. Meanwhile, Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed in a statement issued on Monday has said that his party had no fear of N-leaguers’ threats. He said PTI would register an FIR against the Punjab chief minister if rally participants were subjected to torture by the government.

Imran Khan’s advisor Dr Yasmin Rashid and former Punjab governor Chaudhry Sarwar, while condemning the bad attitude of PML-N with journalists, have said that the government must not threat PTI, as it had no fear from PML-N.

They said they were determined to hold the march according to law, assuring that no worker would take law in his own hands. They also stated that the Sharif brothers should be ready for accountability, as days of corruption in Pakistan have passed. They said the PTI youth and women would play a vital role in the march and there is no dissent amid PTI on the Raiwind march issue and all party members are standing by every decision of Imran Khan. They said their party is all set for the Raiwind march and would not allow the PML-N rulers escape without accountability, as the party workers are ready for any kind of sacrifice to save the country from corruption.