PTI Protest in Red Zone leads to Anti-Terror Case against over 50 including Lawmakers

2026-02-16 - 17:06

ISLAMABAD – Islamabad police have lodged case under Anti-Terrorism Act against 55 people, including seven sitting members of parliament from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), for staging protest in the highly secure Red Zone and allegedly issuing life-threatening warnings to police officers. The case, lodged at the Secretariat Police Station, names a police officer as the complainant. According to the report, the incident occurred on February 15 near Parliament Lodges and Parliament House, where PTI lawmakers and their supporters were holding a protest. Police claim that when officers tried to prevent the gathering, protesters threatened them with “serious consequences”, warning that anyone attempting to stop them would not leave the area alive. The complainant also stated that the crowd, numbering around 50–55 people, included several individuals armed with firearms, sticks, and other materials, raising serious security concerns. In a swift move, four protesters arrested outside Parliament House were produced before the Anti-Terrorism Court, which granted a five-day physical remand, signaling the authorities’ determination to crack down hard. This dramatic confrontation in Islamabad’s Red Zone has intensified political tensions and raised urgent questions about security lapses and law enforcement challenges in the capital. PTI and opposition alliance TTAP continued their fourth-day sit-in demanding urgent medical care for Imran Khan. The protest began after the Supreme Court revealed that Khan now has only 15 percent vision in his right eye, sparking outrage and calls for his immediate transfer to a hospital. TTAP spox Akhunzada Yousafzai said protesters, who had been surviving on dates and biscuits, would now merge their demonstrations at Parliament Lodges and Parliament House. The sit-in spans multiple locations, including Parliament House led by TTAP leaders Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, Parliament Lodges led by PTI lawmakers, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House under KP CM Sohail Afridi. On Sunday, a government medical team examined Khan at Adiala Jail without his family or personal doctors, a move PTI called “malicious.” PTI lawmaker Asad Qaiser warned sit-in will continue until Khan is transferred to Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, and the Supreme Court is approached to secure his right to medical care. Protesters also allege they were denied food, water, and medicine for three consecutive days, calling it a violation of democratic and constitutional rights. PTI says Imran Khan’s Medical Report to be shared with Family after SC Protest