Pakistan being a democratic country should provide its citizens with the freedom of expression. But the Azadi March of 25th May 2022, proved a disaster for the country’s socio-economic factors. It has adversely impacted all the sectors that are helping the stability and development.
25th May 2022, the day people tried to flee to Islamabad to attend the political rally held by the former Prime Minister Imran Khan. In a democratic country where civilians were promised by the authorities to live with their choices but today it is proved wrong, and citizens got to clash with the police. Not only PTI workers but supporters faced severe repercussions.
The Azadi March was held because the PTI wants immediate elections and the removal of the current government. The former premier vowed to hold the biggest march in Pakistan’s political history if the current government does not agree to PTI’s demands.
Barricades were set in different parts of the cities to block PTI workers and supporters to flee towards Islamabad. Authorities ordered police to stop the masses from entering Islamabad and this resulted in a clash between police and civilians. It is worth mentioning that the barricades were placed to seal the area and police had used tear gas to stop the protestors, but they removed all the containers and made their way to the March.
Moreover, police sources said that the PTI protestors in Islamabad set trees and vehicles on fire and the fire brigade was also attacked by the protestors, which is called to douse the blazes. Later the security of the “Red Zone” area was increased.
In Karachi, the PTI supporters protested at Numaish Chowrangi and a police van was set on fire by them. Several policemen were injured during the demonstrations as the protesters pelted stones at them brutally. The aerial firing was started by the police which increased the protesters.
Former energy minister Hammad Azhar got injured amid shelling. The district president of PTI Ali Asjad Malhi got arrested by the police. To maintain the law and order situation in a country, tens of thousands of policemen, Counter-Terrorism Force, Anti-Riot Unit, Anti-Terrorism Force along with Rangers had been deployed.
The Azadi March had halted the supply of petrol. According to the Petroleum and Diesel Association, the supply of petrol has been cut off due to a lack of security clearance. The supply of diesel and petrol is cut off by companies because of the deteriorated traffic situation in response to the Azadi March.
Yasmeen Rashid and Andaleeb Abbasi were detained by the Lahore police but both were released later. Police arrested many PTI workers, marchers, and protestors. The former health minister Yasmeen Rashid’s car was attacked by the police in an attempt to stop her. The widescreen of her car got broken.
Today the citizens witnessed a massive traffic jam all over the country. Students faced many problems with the sun’s scorching beams and heat waves. All this portrays a bad picture of Pakistan internationally.
