What happened?
On 9 September, in an expected turn of events, several PTI leaders and workers were arrested a day after the Islamabad rally. Among those arrested are prominent leaders like PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Sher Afzal Khan Marwat, Waziristan lawmaker Zubair Khan, Advocate Shoaib Shaheen, Zain Qureshi, Sheikh Waqas Akram and Naseem-ur-Rehman. Both Gohar Ali Khan and Mr Marwat were arrested from the Parliament House in the presence of heavy security. Other PTI leaders wanted by the police are Zartaj Gul Wazir, Omar Ayub Khan, and Seemabia Tahir. According to Dawn, these leaders had taken shelter inside the Parliament House. On the same day, PTI leader and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur remained untraceable, fueling several rumors about his whereabouts. He finally reached Peshawar on 10 August putting to rest conflicting claims about his arrest and detention. Along with PTI leaders, head of Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Sahibzada Hamid Raza was also arrested from inside the Parliament House. 

What is the background?
The rally which was held on 8 September on the outskirts of Islamabad in Sangjani had witnessed calls by prominent PTI leaders, especially CM Gandapur, for the widening and expansion of the agitation to Lahore in order to secure incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan’s release. Delivering a fiery but controversial speech, Gandapur had threatened PTI’s opponents with filing of cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and warned that the PTI will take matters in its own hands if its demands are not met. His speech had also targeted the media, women and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, attracting vehement criticism from all quarters. This universal condemnation had prompted PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan to render an “unconditional apology” for the language used at the rally. Further, towards the end of the rally, clashes had broken out between the police and the PTI supporters and workers when the former had tried to disperse the crowd after the designated timeframe according to the no objection certificate (NOC) issue by the district magistrate had lapsed. The police had alleged that the crowd had pelted stones injuring several policemen, including Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Safe City Shoaib Khan. In response, the police had used tear gas shelling to disperse the crowd and control the situation. Leaders from both the ruling coalition and the PTI had exchanged barbed words both during and after the rally. It had also been alleged that the PTI was planning for another 9 May like incident. 

What prompted these arrests?
According to Dawn, the police revealed that three cases were registered at the Sangjani and Noon police stations after the rally. These cases were against both PTI supporters and leaders. One case pertains to the violation of the NOC issued for the rally by the district magistrate and the second relates to an attack on a police contingent by a PTI group while they were moving towards the rally venue. Sources told Dawn that the FIRs had been sealed in order to prevent the names of prominent leaders from leaking, lest they obtained pre-arrest bails.

How has PTI responded?
In a statement on X, the PTI termed these arrests “illegal” and “a slap to the face of an already decimated democracy in Pakistan.” The statement termed the incumbent government as “military backed, authoritarian, illegitimate regime.” The PTI also alleged that these arrests were reflective of the “chaos and desperation in Rawalpindi’s power corridors” after the successful holding of the rally, despite roadblocks. Interestingly, one day after the rally, Imran Khan told reporters that the establishment had approached him through ex-senator Azam Swati, seeking postponement of the PTI’s planned rally from 22 August to 8 September due to security concerns. The establishment had also promised required permissions for 8 September rally. He also alleged that the establishment had promised him “acquittal in all cases” if he remained silent for three years. On 10 August, speaking in the National Assembly, PTI’s Ali Muhammad Khan addressed the arrest of PTI leaders from outside the Parliament and stated “Today, I am making a case on democracy. Last night, what happened to democracy and to this parliament. We are not in Israel, we are in Pakistan.” He conceded that what had happened on 9 May was “wrong” but added that “what happened last night was 9 May for Pakistan’s democracy.”

References:
Munawer Azeem, “PTI top brass swooped up after Sangjani power show,” Dawn, 10 September 2024
Nadir Guramani &Abdul Hakeem, “KP CM Gandapur returns to Peshawar as PTI says at least dozen leaders arrested in late-night raids,” Dawn, 10 September 2024
Abubakar Saddiq, “Arrest rumours: Ali Amin Gandapur reaches KP after hours-long 'radio silence',” The News International, 10 September 2024
“SIC’s Sahibzada Hamid Raza arrested amid crackdown on top PTI leadership,” The Express Tribune, 10 September 2024
Kalbe Ali & Zulqernain Tahir, “Ali Amin Gandapur’s outburst against women, journalists slammed,” Dawn, 10 September 2024
“‘May 9 for democracy’: In fiery NA speech, PTI’s Ali Muhammad Khan blasts govt for arresting party leaders,” Dawn, 10 September 2024