Section 144 imposed ahead of PTI's Pindi power

The Punjab government on Friday imposed Section 144 in Rawalpindi for two days, banning public gatherings, ahead of a PTI rally scheduled in the city on the weekend. Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is a legal provision that empowers district administrations to prohibit an assem- bly of four or more people in an area for a lim- ited period. It is usually imposed to prevent potential disturbances, maintain law and order, and curb any activities that might esca- late into violence.On September 23, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan informed at a press conference that the party would hold a rally in Rawalpindi on September 28. He said that his party had applied for a no-objec- tion certificate (NOC) and requested that the Punjab government grant it. However, PTI founder Imran Khan on Thursday announced that his party would not hold a rally in Rawalpindi on September 28, stating that the decision was made due to an apprehension that the government would not allow his party to hold the event in the city and designate a location in the suburbs as the venue. He said that instead of a rally, the party would stage protests and PTI lawyers would hold a demonstra- tion outside the Supreme Court. According to a notification issued by the Punjab Home Department dated September 27, it men- tioned that a political party had planned a demonstration for September 28 and warned that "miscreants" and "mischief mongers can take advantage of the... pro- test to carry out subversive/anti-state activ- ities... to fulfil their nefarious designs".