Minister says party must examine how supporters are trained, warning hatred & violence can have dangerous consequences
Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry speaking at a press conference. SCREENGRAB
Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry on Wednesday said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leadership could not distance itself from a party worker who attacked security forces, arguing that political leaders had a responsibility to examine how their supporters were “trained” and what ideas had been instilled in their minds.
The worker being referred to was identified as Muhammad Hussain, who allegedly opened fire on security forces on Mall Road in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, injuring a patrolling officer before he was killed in retaliatory firing, according to police.
The Rawalpindi police said Hussain belonged to a “specific political party”. PTI, however, rejected the allegations, with Islamabad Region President Aamir Mughal saying the party believed in a “peaceful and unarmed political struggle” and should not be blamed without evidence.
Addressing a press briefing, Chaudhry said the incident should serve as “a very big lesson” and warned that politics based on “hatred, division and violence” could have dangerous consequences.
“The first thing is that for years, PTI people and its leadership were told that you can protest, you can do politics, you can govern, but do not do politics of hatred and division,” he said.
Chaudhry said political parties had repeatedly been urged to avoid promoting ideas among young people that could have lasting consequences. He argued that when young people were exposed to “hatred and division”, they could eventually express those sentiments through violence.
“You cannot simply say that you have no connection with this worker,” Chaudhry said, questioning who had trained political workers and “given them this ideology”.
He rejected attempts to portray the attacker as mentally unstable and therefore solely responsible for the incident. “He attacked the security forces, the very institution about which you had filled his mind with hatred,” he said.
The minister said that the attack had been planned and that the man had directly opened fire, injuring a security official. He also pointed to the alleged recovery of a PTI flag and other material from the suspect, including content from his mobile phone.
Chaudhry linked Tuesday’s incident to previous confrontations involving PTI, including the May 9 violence and November 26 protests. He accused the party’s leaders of using speeches, social media and internal meetings to promote “hatred and division”.
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The minister also broadened his criticism to social media influencers and YouTubers based outside Pakistan, accusing them of using political content to generate views and revenue while “playing with fire” and fuelling anger among young people.
“It is not only the PTI leadership in Pakistan that is responsible,” Chaudhry said, also holding those “YouTubers and opinion-makers sitting outside the country” responsible for contributing to the environment that could lead to violence.
He questioned the political justification for attacking security personnel, saying the injured official was not a representative of any political party but “a soldier of Pakistan” performing his duty.
“Was this politics?” Chaudhry asked, rejecting violence, vandalism and arson as legitimate forms of political activity. Politics, he said, should instead be based on “service, education, health and justice”.
He also challenged PTI to point to its record of governance in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, where it had been in power for 17 years.
“What have you given to the millions of people of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa?” he asked.
Chaudhry said political competition should be based on “work and performance” rather than confrontation, arguing that neither the country nor its people could be served through hatred, disorder and violence.
He further warned that the latest incident could be a sign of what might happen during future political activity.
“What happened on November 26 could happen on September 27,” he said, warning that continued exposure of party workers to “division, hatred and fire” could produce similar consequences.
The minister said authorities had withheld some evidence because the incident remained under investigation, adding that the available material would eventually be presented before the courts.
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Chaudhry also questioned why the suspect, who he said was now being described as mentally unstable, had previously been allowed to participate in party activities and protests. “If he was so mentally unstable, why did you keep bringing him to such places?” he asked. “Why did you bring him to the front line of your protests?”
He said political parties should not exploit young people who might be emotionally vulnerable or susceptible to political influence. “Every Pakistani has the right to do politics. There should be politics,” he said, adding that PTI was “slowly making itself irrelevant”.
Chaudhry cited the dissolution of assemblies, resignations, the May 9 violence and November 26 protests as examples of developments that had contributed to the party being “cut to size”.
He said the latest incident was still being investigated and that the authorities would conduct a “fair and free investigation” regardless of the suspect’s political affiliation.
Chaudhry concluded by warning, “The state and state institutions will not allow any violent group to destabilise Pakistan by attacking any Pakistani institution,” he said.
The minister said that Pakistan had political stability, economic stability was emerging and investment was coming into the country, adding that the government would not allow political disorder to undermine that progress.
PTI rejects allegations
The incident took place on Tuesday at around 11:15am on Mall Road in Rawalpindi, when Muhammad Hussain allegedly opened fire on security forces, injuring a member of a patrolling team. The Rawalpindi police said security personnel returned fire and killed the attacker.
Police described Hussain as belonging to a “specific political party”, while Pakistan Television News, citing security sources, identified him as an active PTI member and a resident of Khyber district.
A PTI flag, weapons, ammunition and other documents were reportedly recovered from his possession, while police said material recovered from his mobile phone had provided further evidence and that investigations were continuing.
The incident drew criticism from Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, who accused PTI of promoting violence and unrest and said there was no justification for a party worker to fire on a security official. He also alleged that violent protests had become a pattern for the party and that its demonstrations had not been peaceful.
Mughal rejected the allegations, saying the party believed in a “peaceful and unarmed political struggle”. He said PTI would condemn any attack on the GHQ if established, but called for an independent investigation and said the party should not be blamed without evidence.
He added that the narrative portraying PTI as a “terrorist, disruptive or anti-state organisation” had been rejected by voters in the February 8, 2024 general elections.
