Ex-PM Khan’s party postpones Lahore rally saying administration not granting permission

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s party has postponed its rally in Lahore that was scheduled to be held on August 27, a party member said, adding the administration refused to grant permission for the gathering despite the Lahore High Court (LHC) directives.
This is the second setback suffered by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of the jailed former premier in less than a week. The party previously deferred its rally in Islamabad.
PTI Punjab Information Secretary Shaukat Basra told Arab News they would request the Lahore High Court for permission to hold the rally in Lahore after the Islamabad gathering.
“Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf will hold a public gathering in Lahore after the Islamabad rally on September 8. At the moment, we want to fully focus on Islamabad public gathering,” Basra told Arab News on Monday.
“The PTI will be filing a contempt of court petition in the Lahore High Court against the administration. We will be requesting the court for permission for a public gathering in Lahore.”
On Thursday, the PTI announced postponement of its rally in Islamabad, a day after the Islamabad chief commissioner denied permission for the event, citing security threats and a lack of resources with security agencies. The rally was initially planned for July to build pressure for Khan’s release from prison following his arrest over a year ago, but the party had rescheduled it for August 22.
The PTI has struggled to hold rallies across the country since August last year when Khan was arrested on multiple charges and subsequently convicted in four cases, all of which have since been quashed by higher courts. New cases have since been filed against Khan and he remains in prison.
The party says it is facing a state-backed crackdown and the mass arrest of its members and supporters for standing by Khan. Pakistani authorities deny this.