PTI activist held over alleged May 9-style plot

Lahore police have arrested a suspected PTI activist over allegations that he was involved in a plan to create violence in the provincial capital during the party’s planned September 27 protests.

DIG Operations Faisal Kamran said the suspect, identified as Amin, was allegedly involved in arranging and training people for violence similar to the incidents of May 9. Police said Amin was arrested on September 26 after receiving information about the alleged plan.

According to the police, an audio recording recovered from Amin’s mobile phone allegedly contains conversations about gathering between 20 and 30 people to cause unrest in Lahore. Police also claimed that a woman identified as Fatima Haider was involved in the alleged discussions.

The DIG said Haider was associated with the PTI welfare wing and had previously faced cases related to the May 9 incidents. Police alleged that she and Amin had discussed preparations for creating unrest during the planned protests.

Police said several other audio recordings were also recovered from the suspect’s phone. Authorities have formed multiple teams to investigate the alleged plan and identify other people who may have been involved.

The PTI has strongly rejected the allegations. Punjab PTI information secretary Shaukat Basra described the police claims as part of what he called a campaign to create a narrative against the party.

Basra said the PTI had repeatedly directed its supporters to remain peaceful. He challenged police to present concrete evidence to support the allegations.

He also repeated the party’s position that the May 9 violence was a false-flag operation and questioned why CCTV footage related to the incidents had not been presented in court.

Basra further disputed police claims that authorities had not entered private residences or taken unlawful action. He said videos posted on his social media accounts showed police entering homes and challenged senior police officials to respond to those allegations.