Civil Lines Police on Friday registered a case against 600 workers and leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) for holding a rally on The Mall.
However, police quashed the FIR on the intervention of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif late at night. Earlier, PTI leadership, along with thousands of workers, held a protest rally on Friday against massive price hike and prolonged electricity outages.
The rally started from Mozang Chowk and concluded outside WAPDA House on The Mall, violating Section 144 imposed by the district coordination officer on the orders of the Supreme Court.
Sources said Civil Lines police registered a case against 600 workers and leaders of the PTI, including Javed Hashmi, Khursheed Kasuri, Ibrarul Haq, Mian Mehmoodul Rasheed, Ahsan Rasheed, Karamat Khokhar and others for violating Section 144.
On Thursday, PML-N leaders and workers had also held a protest rally on The Mall.
Senior advocate Azhar Siddique had filed a complaint for registering a case against PML-N leaders and worker for holding a rally on The Mall, but CCPO Ahmed Raza Tahir refused receiving any such complaint and police did not register any case against any of the PML-N workers. Late at night, PTI leaders and workers reached the civil lines police station to lodge a protest, saying an FIR should be registered against PML-N leaders as well for violating Section 144 on The Mall, if the police had to book PTI leaders for the same offence.
Later, the case was withdrawn on Shahbaz Sharif’s orders.