Jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan's Islamabad Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf ( ) on Saturday postponed its rally in suburban Islamabad after authorities revoked its permit, citing security concerns.
The party was scheduled to organize its power show in Tarnol at 6 pm, for which it had obtained a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the deputy commissioner of Islamabad.
However, on Friday the city administration canceled the permission saying that the NOC issued by the deputy commissioner was reviewed again due to safety concerns.
An official press release said that the chief commissioner decided to cancel the certificate issued for the political meeting in view of the current security situation, the approach of Muharram, security concerns and reports from law enforcement agencies.
Initially, the management had threatened to go ahead with the demonstration despite the cancellation of the permit. Leader Omar Ayub Khan told reporters last night that his party would go ahead with the planned meeting "no matter what."
However, there was a change of stance and today Omar, accompanied by Chief Gohar Khan, told a press conference that the planned rally had been postponed until after Muharram.
“God willing […] we will celebrate it after Ashura through a legal process,” Omar said, adding that they would not gather after a rally but would hold several other rallies in Lahore, Karachi and other cities.
Gohar Khan claimed that several workers had been detained in recent days and vowed to take the matter to court. "We strongly condemn this state brutality," he said.
Earlier in the day, the party filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking contempt proceedings against the Islamabad district administration and police for canceling the NOC.
He stated that the party had approached the IHC seeking permission for the rally and during the hearing of their petition, the administration informed the court that permission for the rally had been granted.
The party was scheduled to organize its power show in Tarnol at 6 pm, for which it had obtained a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the deputy commissioner of Islamabad.
However, on Friday the city administration canceled the permission saying that the NOC issued by the deputy commissioner was reviewed again due to safety concerns.
An official press release said that the chief commissioner decided to cancel the certificate issued for the political meeting in view of the current security situation, the approach of Muharram, security concerns and reports from law enforcement agencies.
Initially, the management had threatened to go ahead with the demonstration despite the cancellation of the permit. Leader Omar Ayub Khan told reporters last night that his party would go ahead with the planned meeting "no matter what."
However, there was a change of stance and today Omar, accompanied by Chief Gohar Khan, told a press conference that the planned rally had been postponed until after Muharram.
“God willing […] we will celebrate it after Ashura through a legal process,” Omar said, adding that they would not gather after a rally but would hold several other rallies in Lahore, Karachi and other cities.
Gohar Khan claimed that several workers had been detained in recent days and vowed to take the matter to court. "We strongly condemn this state brutality," he said.
Earlier in the day, the party filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking contempt proceedings against the Islamabad district administration and police for canceling the NOC.
He stated that the party had approached the IHC seeking permission for the rally and during the hearing of their petition, the administration informed the court that permission for the rally had been granted.