Following the arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan, the violent protests in various areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa resulted in significant loss of life and property.

According to the police authorities, protesters from PTI blocked roads at 139 places on Tuesday and Wednesday and burnt a total of 15 properties including 13 government buildings in the province. The violent protests caused 7 fatalities and over 300 people, including 58 police personnel, were injured.

Four people died in Peshawar, two in Kohat, and one in Dir. Among the injured were 36 officials, including four SP and SHO rank officers, police officials reported.

During the protests, 17 vehicles including 12 government vehicles and an Edhi ambulance were set on fire in different areas of the province.

The police have registered a case against the protestors involved in the attack on Radio Pakistan Peshawar, which includes anti-terrorism provisions. The FIR reveals that three hundred protesters stormed the building of Radio Pakistan on Wednesday, and 20 miscreants have been arrested while the identification of other accused is underway using CCTV cameras.

Moreover, reports of theft from Nadra Mega Center, police posts, and many other buildings and shops have been reported in the metropolitan city.

Notably, Chakdara, Charsada, and Swabi interchanges were set on fire during the violent protests yesterday, leading to the closure of the motorway for all traffic. According to police officials, 296 people involved in the violent protests have been arrested from different areas.

On Thursday, there were no reports of any major demonstrations by the protestors in the province, and the situation seems to be much better than in the previous days.

Meanwhile, in Islamabad, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Vice Chairman of PTI, along with Fawad Chaudhry, Musarat Iqbal Cheema, and Malika Bukhari were arrested. Qureshi was arrested from Gilgit-Baltistan House under 3 MPO and transferred to an unknown location, while Fawad Chaudhry was arrested under 16 MPO outside the Supreme Court around 11:30 pm. Chaudhry had stayed in the Supreme Court building for almost 12 hours to avoid arrest.

Before his arrest, Qureshi released a video statement in which he stated that if he doesn’t get more relief, he wants to leave with a message that the real freedom struggle should continue.

It should be noted that Imran Khan’s arrest was made last Tuesday in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption case, which led to nationwide protests by Tehreek-e-Insaf workers. During these protests, sensitive facilities were attacked, resulting in the arrest of more than 1,000 workers, including central leaders, from across the country.