PTI govt counting last days in power, says Maryam Nawaz ahead of PDM's Multan rally

PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz on Monday said that the PTI-led government is counting its last days in power and is going to be sent packing soon.

She was speaking to journalists before leaving Lahore for Multan where the PDM is holding a jalsa today despite the government's insistence to avoid large gatherings in the wake of rising coronavirus cases across the country. 

"The coronavirus standard operating procedures (SOPs) are being openly violated across the country. When Jamat-i-Islami and the ruling PTI hold their rallies and conventions, does coronavirus not spread there?" she said. "Are all the SOPs only for the Opposition?

She added that while COVID-19 will eventually be over, the people of Pakistan will have to push away "COVID-18" from this country, referring to PM Imran Khan's government which came to power through elections in 2018.

The PML-N vice-president said police is arresting Opposition workers in Multan in a bid to stop the Pakistan Democratic Movement's (PDM) jalsa.

"I have been to jail twice without committing any crime," Maryam said. "If they arrest me for a third time, it is not a big deal for me. The jalsa will take place at all costs. And it will be a successful one."

A day ago, the PML-N claimed that dozens of its workers had been arrested from Multan's Ghanta Ghar Chowk after they started a rally headed by MNA Rana Sanaullah.

Commenting on the arrests, PML-N Secretary Information Marriyum Aurangzeb told Geo News that party members were carrying out a peaceful rally but the government ordered their arrest for no reason.

"The jalsa will take place at all costs. If an untoward situation arises, then PM Imran Khan will be solely responsible for that," she had said.

Read more: The PDM jalsa will take place at all costs tomorrow: Marriyum Aurangzeb