- PM’s aide describes upcoming February 8 wheel-jam strike as ‘violence,’ saying PTI not in a position to launch such nationwide movement
- Cites May 9 prosecutions as warning for participants, claiming only a handful of people from KP might join
- Three-day KP CM visit includes meetings with leaders, lawyers, business community
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, on Friday accused Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi of engaging in “illegal activity and travel” by attempting to mobilise the party’s support base for a nationwide street movement. He described the PTI-led wheel-jam strike scheduled for February 8 as “violence” and asserted that the party is not in a position to launch such a movement.
Speaking on a television channel, Sanaullah said, “The KP CM is involved in illegal activity and his travel is illegal as they cannot mobilise because it isn’t in accordance with the law.”
KP CM Sohail Afridi began a visit to Karachi to rally party support for PTI’s planned street movement, reportedly under the direction of party founder Imran Khan.
When asked which part of CM Afridi’s visit was illegal, Sanaullah said, “How is a wheel-jam strike a political activity permitted by the law and Constitution? Holding a wheel-jam strike in and of itself is illegal.” He added that the Sindh government would not permit a wheel-jam strike and that the PTI “is not in a position to block even one road.”
Responding to Sanaullah, Adviser to the KP Chief Minister on Information Shafiullah Jan, also present on the programme, clarified that the February 8 wheel-jam strike was called by Mahmood Khan Achakzai, chairman of the Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) opposition alliance.
Jan said, “Rana Sanaullah is confused; he issued a statement saying that if the call [to strike] isn’t revoked, May 9 cases will be opened,” referring to the prosecution of PTI members over riots that occurred on May 9, 2023. “This shows that May 9 was a false flag operation against the PTI. As far as February 8 is concerned, the PTI will support and accept Achakzai’s call for a wheel-jam.”
Sanaullah maintained that PTI’s street movement would not succeed, claiming that “only a handful of people from KP” might join.
He said, “When these people are prosecuted, they will create a ruckus. They are still claiming that May 9 was a false flag operation and that their members weren’t involved. They are willing to spread lies and create misunderstandings. Tell me, can you believe what they say?”
Questioning the purpose of PTI’s movement, Sanaullah added, “With this wheel-jam strike, they say that KP will lead it. What are they leading? At most 4,500 people turned up at their Peshawar rally, even though they had been preparing for a month. In KP, they will try, but they will fail, and whoever takes part will continue to cry about false flags and fake cases when they get prosecuted.”
During his three-day visit, KP CM Sohail Afridi is scheduled to meet party leadership, lawyers, business leaders, and Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. The visit aims to energise PTI’s newly launched street movement in Karachi and other cities, advocating for the release of the incarcerated former prime minister.
