A meeting involving the district administration and district intelligence concluded in Lahore on Friday, during which, sources said, it was decided to grant conditional permission to the PTI rally based on police reports.
The approval, along with a no-objection certificate (NOC), is expected to be submitted to the Lahore High Court within an hour.
Sources said that the notification would comprise 40 clauses and the administration was also considering changing the rally venue.
Earlier in the day, the LHC ordered the city’s deputy commissioner to decide by 5pm upon PTI’s petitions for permission to hold a rally in the provincial capital tomorrow (Saturday).
A three-member bench, constituted by LHC Chief Justice Aalia Neelum, took up the petitions a day ago and sought the personal appearance of top civil brass, including the Punjab chief secretary, the police chief, the commissioner, the DC, and the advocate general.
The PTI has initiated its mass contact campaign to gather support for its rally at Minar-i-Pakistan in Lahore. Petitions for the upcoming gathering have been submitted by PTI leaders, including former MNA Aalia Hamza Malik, MPA Imtiaz Mahmood Sheikh, and Lahore Vice President Akmal Khan Bari.
On Friday, a bench led by Justice Farooq Haider, alongside Justices Tariq Nadeem and Ali Zia Bajwa, resumed hearings on such petitions. The court instructed Deputy Commissioner Syed Musa Raza to make a decision regarding PTI’s recent application by 5pm on Friday (today).
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While the party sought a NOC for the rally, the LHC judge also directed the registrar’s office to schedule a hearing for a separate petition by PTI requesting permission to hold the event.
In recent months, the Punjab Home Department has frequently imposed Section 144 to prohibit political gatherings, including on August 21, when measures were taken to prevent PTI leaders and supporters from attending a planned power show in Islamabad, which was ultimately postponed.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari questioned why a rally should be allowed for those she claims “spew hatred and curse on stage.” She told Geo News, “You will never hear any political talk from their stage.”
