Achakzai-led alliance plans receptions en route, claims crackdown on PTI workers
The TTAP convoy reached Gujar Khan where it received a formal welcome. SCREEN GRAB
A convoy of Tehreek Tahaffuz Aain Pakistan (TTAP), an alliance of opposition parties, left Islamabad for Lahore on Thursday to express solidarity with the sisters of jailed PTI founder Imran Khan.
Led by TTAP chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai, the convoy included about 70 vehicles carrying senior leaders of the movement as well as opposition members of the Punjab Assembly, including opposition leader Moeen Qureshi. A collective prayer was offered before the convoy departed.
The convoy reached Gujar Khan, where it received a formal welcome.
Party sources said Gujar Khan was the first of five planned receptions along the route. However, PTI sources said the first big reception was expected in Jhelum, where party workers were preparing to welcome the leadership.
According to TTAP spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain, Achakzai, Allama Raja Nasir, Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar and former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser were initially part of the delegation. PTI sources later said that Asad Qaiser would not join the convoy as he was scheduled to hold a press conference at KP House with lawyer Gohar Ali Khan and Salman Akram Raja around 2 pm on Thursday.
PTI sources also said that Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar had a prior family commitment and was expected to join the delegation on Friday. Akhunzada Hussain later confirmed that Asad Qaiser and Mustafa Nawaz would not accompany the convoy for these reasons, but said that both leaders, including Asad Qaiser, would join later.
Akhunzada Hussain said the delegation would be received at five different places between Gujar Khan and Data Darbar. He said the convoy was expected to arrive in Lahore at 19:00 and that Zaman Park would serve as a base for political activities. He added that Moeen Qureshi was making arrangements for a possible engagement in the Punjab Assembly, though no plan had been finalised.
A PTI source said the party had already approached Imran Khan’s sister to seek permission for an engagement at Zaman Park, but the program was not yet finalised. He said other engagements were also unconfirmed and arrangements were terminated immediately.
According to the same source, after the reception in Gujar Khan, the convoy was expected to stop for lunch in Jhelum, followed by another significant event in Gujrat. The penultimate reception is planned at Shahdrah while the last reception will be held at Data Darbar. He said activities at the Punjab Assembly, Minar-e-Pakistan and other places were also under consideration.
Read: The TTAP convoy arrives in Lahore today
Akhunzada Hussain said permission to use Zaman Park as the base had been given a month ago. He described Zaman Park as a symbol of resistance and said PTI had no objection to its use.
Meanwhile, PTI leader Brigadier (retd) Mushtaq, the party’s focal point in Punjab and member of the provincial assembly, said the convoy would pass through several cities before reaching Lahore. He alleged that the provincial government was under pressure due to the movement and alleged that PTI workers were facing a crackdown in several cities.
He said that on Wednesday, a “full fury” of police action was unleashed against PTI leaders and workers in Jhelum, including arrests, house searches, door knocking and harassment. He said that the house of the district general secretary of the party was searched and the district president was arrested in District Jhelum.
