Pakistan’s struggling economy has taken a significant hit, costing Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party over PKR 2 billion, Geo News reported.
Official data shows that over the past 18 months, PTI’s handling of protests and sit-ins has drained PKR 2.7 billion from government coffers, with PKR 1.2 billion spent in the last six months due to violent protests in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). and Islamabad.
The financial toll includes PKR 1.5 billion in damage to public and private property. The damage included vandalizing Safe City cameras worth PKR 280 million in Islamabad, Lahore and Rawalpindi. In addition, 220 police vehicles were destroyed during the protests, adding to the financial strain.
The wave of protests began on May 9 last year and continues unabated, with the most recent “do-or-die” demonstration taking place this Sunday. The event, which saw more than 34,000 security personnel deployed in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, added an estimated PKR 300 million to the cumulative expenditure.
To maintain law and order during these demonstrations, the security forces incurred considerable expenses. Transport personnel cost over PKR 900 million, while catering and logistics for the police is another PKR 1.5 billion. The deployment of Frontier Corps (FC), Rangers and Army personnel added PKR 300 million to the bill. In total, the authorities rented 3,000 containers at a cost of PKR 800 million to control the protests.
Clashes between PTI supporters and security forces have left four security personnel dead and over 220 injured.
Imran Khan, the jailed founder of the PTI, has been a key figure in the protests despite being behind bars for over a year and facing more than 150 criminal cases. PTI claims that the matter is politically motivated.
Pakistani police arrested thousands of Imran Khan’s supporters and sealed off Islamabad with shipping containers and blocked major roads and highways connecting the city to PTI strongholds, AP reported. Adding to the disruptions, the government suspended mobile and internet services in areas deemed security threats.
