Pakistani Police Arrest 120 at Youth Convention Ahead of Anti-Gov't Protest

Pakistani police have arrested 120 people in Islamabad at the youth convention organized by the opposition forces ahead of an anti-government protest next week, local media reported.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Thursday, the Pakistani authorities forbade any public meetings and political protests in the city, while the supporters of the opposition party Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced that they would violate the ban, according to the Geo TV channel.

The youth convention was organized by the PTI ahead of a major anti-government meeting scheduled for November 2. One of the party leaders, Shah Mehmood Qureshi argued his arrest, stressing that the protest was peaceful.

"Peaceful protest is our constitutional right. On whose orders did they raise their arms to attack these peaceful workers? Why are our workers being arrested?" Qureshi was quoted as saying by the Geo TV channel.

The government reportedly said that the PTI had not applied for the permission to hold the youth convention.

The massive opposition protest in Islamabad on November 2 will call for the resignation of the Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. PTI chairman Imran Khan accused Sharif of electoral fraud and corruption.