Imran wants FIR as per his demand, says Pak Interior Minister

Islamabad, Nov 8 (IANS) The Interior Minister of Pakistan, Rana Sanaullah, said on Tuesday that PTI Chairman Imran Khan wanted the FIR in the Wazirabad attack on him according to his demands, a media report said.

"He [Imran] cannot get an FIR registered and wants to bring about a revolution," Sanaullah said, Express Tribune reported.

He said there "must be some sort of evidence" for an FIR to be registered and if one is to go by the PTI's demands, someone can even register a case against the Chief Justice, the report said.

He added that till now, only one suspect was taken into custody and there are no other suspects.

Recalling the attack on Ahsan Iqbal, Sanaullah maintained that the suspect had the same kind of motivation, as he was "self-motivated" and not linked to any political or religious group.

The minister, referring to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) long march as "fitna march", said that party supporters were causing trouble in Islamabad, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, adding that only "a few thousand people" had joined PTI's march.

Sanaullah said the citizens were facing many hardships in going to work, picking up children from school, and commuting to essential services such as hospitals due to road closures and protests, Express Tribune reported.

Urging the provincial governments to fulfil their constitutional duty, Sanaullah said they should ensure that motorways and thoroughfares remain open and not to "protect" the protesters, otherwise "there would be consequences".

For the second day, PTI supporters blocked roads near Islamabad, disrupting traffic and forcing schools to close, as they protested against a bid to assassinate Khan at a recent anti-government rally in Wazirabad.

PTI supporters began their protests on major roads around Islamabad late on Monday. They have blocked the highway to Islamabad's international airport and the ones linking the capital with Lahore and Peshawar.

Television footage showed the supporters burning tyres as they set up protest camps across roads, Express Tribune reported.