AUTHORITIES sealed off the country’s capital, Islamabad, and blocked cellphone services to prevent an anti-government rally by supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, officials said.
It would be the latest in a series of protest rallies since last month to press for Khan’s release and agitate against the ruling coalition government, which the party calls illegitimate, saying it was formed after a fraudulent election.
Shipping containers have been placed to block Islamabad’s entry and exit points, guarded by large numbers of police and paramilitary troops, the officials said, while police banned any gathering in the capital.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi urged Khan’s party to shift the rally to later dates, to avoid disrupting Islamabad’s preparations to host a meeting of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) on Oct 15 and Oct 16.
Disregarding the appeal, Khan asked his supporters to gather outside parliament regardless of obstacles.
Schools were shut and cellphone services suspended in Islamabad and the adjacent garrison city of Rawalpindi.
A telecoms official said cellphone services were blocked on directions from the interior ministry. — Reuters
