LAHORE: The Opposition Leader in the Punjab Assembly, Malik Ahmad Khan Bhachar, has said the Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf is not in competition with the PML-N or the PPP, but with the establishment that brought both these parties in power.

In a meeting with senior journalists at the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday, Mr Bhachar said the establishment was called in to support the civil administration under Article 245 of the Constitution on Nov 26 (2023) at D-Chowk, Islamabad.

Answering a question, he said, a dialogue could be successful in an hour, if the establishment wanted to. He alleged that the PTl faced fascism at its peak and claimed that the party leaders were denied access to the incarcerated party founder, Imran Khan.

PTl Punjab chief organizer Ms Aliya Hamza said the government`s failure in wheat procurement, decline in cotton crop, lower tax growth, increasing fuel and power prices and unbridled inflation were making the lives of the poor miserable.

Earlier, speaking at a press conference, Mr Bhachar said the Punjab chief minister and her uncle had filled newspapers` front pages with their advertisements using the public money recklessly. He said Supreme Court`s 2018 judgment bars any political party from using the public resources for personal advertisement.

`The advertisement campaign in newspapers is a contempt of court and the PTl will approach the court,` he said.

Mr Bhachar said this government published a book, which was nothing but a pack of lies and added that the PTl would bring a `white paper` against them. `We requested for the book, which the PML-N government published, but it was not given to us,` he added.

Mr Bhachar alleged that the police were continuously raiding the residences of the PTl MPAs and ticket-holders. The PML-N government was using police only to arrest the PTl workers, instead of curbing crime in society, he added.

He regretted that PTl MPA and former minister Mian Aslam Iqbal had not been allowed to take oath at the Punjab Assembly, and urged the speaker to grant him the permission.

Mr Bhachar said the PTl members had also submitted a requisition for calling the assembly session to discuss the issue of denying the party leaders access to Imran Khan in jail. Staff Reporter