RAWALPINDI: The north Punjab chapter of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has asked its office-bearers to speed up the campaign to mobilise party workers and activists for the September 27 protest in Islamabad with the demand to release Imran Khan.

Asking workers to avoid arrest, the party claimed that its 119 prominent workers and activists had been arrested by police in six districts of Rawalpindi division in the last two days. It added that in total 225 workers had been arrested in the north Punjab.

The PTI has formed teams to mobilise workers and activists and asked them to ensure the task without being arrested.

A senior party leader told Dawn that a legal team had also been formed by the party lawyers. Moreover, the information wing of the party has prepared the list of workers who have been arrested.

North chapter says 119 prominent workers and activists arrested in six districts of Rawalpindi division

He said that three lawyers, including PTI north Punjab Vice President Husnain Sumbal, PTI District Rawalpindi Secretary General Aqil Khan and Punjab Bar Council Member Malik Faisal were pursuing the cases related to the arrested workers.

He said a total of 31 people were arrested in Rawalpindi district, 23 in Attock, 29 in Jhelum, one in Murree, 10 in Talagang, 26 in Chakwal, 40 in Mianawali, seven in Bhakhar, 24 in Sargodha and 34 in Khoshab.

He said that a meeting of the office-bearers of PTI Rawalpindi chapter with KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was held in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House Islamabad on Sunday and it was decided that workers and activists of the party from Rawalpindi district will join the rally coming from KP to Islamabad.

He said the matter of arrest of the party workers was discussed in the meeting and it was decided that office-bearers will continue its preparations in areas without coming into public so they will join the protest rally on September 27. He said the message was delivered to the party workers through social media that their presence was necessary for the release of Imran Khan as it was the main protest.

When contacted, PTI District President Ch. Ameer Afzal Khan said a plan had been prepared to join the protest in Islamabad with a large number of people and workers in Rawalpindi will ensure their presence. He said a five-member committee had been formed at the tehsil level to mobilise workers and activists.

“We assigned duties to prominent workers in three layers. If the first batch is arrested then the second one will lead the workers and in case of their arrest, the third batch will lead,” he said.

This time, proper work has been completed and public mobilisation has started in all wards of the district, he added.

About the arrested workers, he said a 10-member committee had been formed which was visiting jails to meet the workers. “We will not leave our workers unattended and will pursue their cases at every cost,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 15th, 2026