• KP CM to visit deceased PTI worker today
• Gatherings of five or more banned across Punjab
• 23,500 cops sought for Islamabad security ahead of Sept 27 sit-in
• Sanaullah warns against violence, terror threat

LAHORE/RAWALPINDI: While Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has hinted at altering his planned Punjab tour following the demise of a PTI worker, the authorities sprang into action on Sunday with the Centre seeking additional police force from provinces and the Punjab government imposing a ban on gatherings until Sept 17, ahead of the opposition party’s planned march on the federal capital.

The PTI had earlier announced a 13-city Punjab tour for Mr Afridi for rallying supporters ahead of a “decisive peaceful protest march” on Islamabad on Sept 27.

The caravan was scheduled to start from Daud Khel on Monday to reach Faisalabad for an overnight stay after passing through Mianwali City, Wanbachran, Quaidabad, Joharabad, Khushab, Shahpur, Sargodha, Lalian and Chiniot. The caravan was planned to move from Faisalabad towards Lahore, with a brief stop at Sheikhupura.

However, the KP CM said he would visit the residence of the deceased party worker in Lahore first. “Tomorrow, I will go to the home of martyred Ishtiaq Ahmad in Lahore, and after that, I will outline the course of action for the Punjab Street Movement right here in Lahore,” he said.

Ban on gatherings across Punjab

On the other hand, the Punjab home department banned gatherings of five or more people across the province until Sept 17 under Section 144 of criminal procedure code. The order also forbids the carrying or display of weapons in public and prohibits activity deemed to incite unlawful assembly, though it carves out exceptions for weddings, funerals, religious observance and court and government business.

Officials justified the clampdown by citing intelligence suggesting terrorist groups might target large public rallies, saying the aim was to safeguard lives and property rather than to suppress dissent.

The scale of the security operation extends well beyond Punjab. Under a federal directive, Punjab has been told to supply 15,000 police personnel for Islamabad’s security, with Sindh contributing 8,000 and Balochistan 500 with a combined deployment of 23,500 officers due to be in place by Sept 20.

In Rawalpindi, the city’s police chief, Hassan Mushtaq Sukhera, has cancelled leave for all officers until October, barring genuine emergencies. The police also drew up a list of 179 PTI figures, including sitting and former lawmakers.

Also, district authorities have issued preventive detention orders against dozens of PTI workers under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order, including 31 in one Punjab notification and a further 14 in Toba Tek Singh.

At the same time, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah during an interaction with journalists in Lahore, alleged the opposition party was planning to bring “armed supporters” into Islamabad.

Also, the PM’s aide warned that terrorists from what he referred to as “India-sponsored Fitna al-Khawarij” might exploit the rally to widen the rift between the public and the state. He predicted the protest would ultimately fail.

PTI’s Punjab information secretary, Shaukat Basra, described a coordinated campaign against its leadership and rank and file, claiming hundreds of workers, including women, had been detained in raids across the province.

Other PTI leaders, too, accused the provincial authorities of using force against party workers during preparations for an Eid Miladun Nabi celebration. They alleged that a heavy police contingent accompanied the funeral procession of PTI worker Ishtiaq Ahmed, who died after remaining under treatment for burn injuries that he suffered during illegal raids by police. They further alleged that funeral prayers for him were conducted hurriedly, preventing some relatives from attending.