Shooting on security personnel in Pindi: Minister says PTI leadership cannot 'absolve themselves of responsibility'

Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry stated on Wednesday that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) could not "absolve themselves of responsibility" following the death of a man shot by law enforcement on Rawalpindi's Mall Road for allegedly attacking security forces. Quoting security sources, PTV News reported that the alleged attacker was a resident of Khyber district and an active member of the PTI.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar had previously criticized the PTI's "politics of violence" after state media reported the incident. However, the PTI distanced itself from the event, asserting it had no ties to terrorism and efforts were being made to distance the party from it. During a press conference in Islamabad, Chaudhry noted that the PTI leadership had previously warned against perpetuating the politics of hatred and anarchy.

He emphasized that the party had warned against influencing youth with ideas that could not be undone. Chaudhry questioned why the PTI leadership could not absolve themselves of responsibility, asking who trained the political workers and provided them with an ideology. He pointed out that the alleged shooter carried a PTI flag and had information on his mobile phone, reaffirming that the party could not separate itself from the incident.

Chaudhry accused the party of continuously filling the minds of youth with hatred and anarchy through various means, including their founder's tweets, speeches, and discussions in internal meetings. This, he argued, led to incidents on May 9, November 26, and the recent incident. The minister criticized the PTI for ridiculing martyrs' statues on social media while soldiers gave their lives for the country.

He alleged that not only the party's leadership, but also YouTubers, social media influencers, and opinion makers outside the country were responsible for stirring up the youth. Chaudhry emphasized that the attack was not on a political party worker, but on a soldier performing his duty to maintain law and order, questioning if such violence could be considered "politics".

Instead, he called for politics through performance, challenging the PTI to demonstrate progress made in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during their 17-year rule. He urged the country and Pakistanis to avoid hatred, anarchy, and violence, calling yesterday's incident a sign of what would occur during the planned long march to Islamabad on September 27.

Chaudhry noted that the alleged assailant had posted videos on social media showing himself attacking police personnel, alleging that PTI leaders and workers had published inciting violence speeches and videos on their social media accounts. He criticized the party for upholding those convicted of violence as "heroes" and defending them, while simultaneously claiming they had no association with such individuals.

Regarding the shooting, Chaudhry questioned why the party kept the unstable individual on the frontline of protests and brought him to meet representatives, asking if they were using young or mentally weak individuals. He questioned why the party did not distance themselves earlier if he was unstable. Chaudhry stated that while politics was a right, the PTI was not serving anyone with this type of politics and was only harming Pakistan's reputation and becoming irrelevant.

He said that a fair and free investigation into the incident was underway, with the results to be made known.