Manzoor Pashteen, the chief of the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM), was arrested by Levies and police personnel in the Gudhamo area after an incident of firing on police from his vehicle, according to Chaman Deputy Commissioner Raja Athar Abbas.
پشتون تحفظ موومنٹ کے رہنما منظور پشتین ایک قافلے کی شکل میں چمن سے تربت کی طرف جارہے تھے کہ چمن میں فوج اور پولیس نے ان کی گاڑی پر سٹریٹ فائرنگ کردی ہیں، انکی گرفتاری کی کوششیں جاری ہیں، پورا علاقہ فوج، ایف سی اور پولیس نے محاصرہ کر لیا ہے۔
پی ٹی ایم سوشل میڈیا ٹیم
— Manzoor Pashteen (@ManzoorPashteen) December 4, 2023
The arrest, which took place nearly four hours after PTM’s claim that Pashteen’s vehicle was fired upon by law enforcement agencies, was related to today’s incident and Pashteen’s alleged violation of a ban on his entry into Balochistan. The firing incident occurred on Mall Road as Pashteen and a caravan were reportedly en route from Chaman to Turbat, where protests against an alleged extra-judicial killing were underway.
Chaman Deputy Commissioner Abbas stated, “Today, police were fired at from Pashteen’s car on Mall Road,” adding that a case had been registered against the PTM leader. Pashteen is expected to be presented before a district magistrate.
In contrast, PTM’s social media team had earlier claimed that “police and army carried out straight firing on his vehicle” during the journey. The statement, posted on Pashteen’s X account, asserted ongoing efforts to arrest the PTM leader, with police, Frontier Corps, and the army reportedly besieging the area.
Caretaker Balochistan Information Minister Jan Achakzai labeled PTM as an “anti-Pakistan organisation” and stated that Pashteen had been banned from entering Balochistan, a restriction reiterated three times by the interior ministry. Achakzai accused Pashteen of staging a rally in Chaman without government permission and claimed that Pashteen, along with his guards, had been hiding in a village.
Responding to questions about the alleged firing incident, Minister Achakzai suggested that Pashteen’s own guards might be responsible, saying, “He has his own guards, firing can also happen because of them.” The situation remains tense as developments unfold in this ongoing incident.
