An opposition party worker was shot dead in Pakistan on Monday, officials said, as hundreds of activists clashed with riot police armed with water cannon in the central city of Faisalabad.
The opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (Pakistan Movement for Justice or
PTI) led by cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan had vowed to paralyze the city as part of its efforts to topple the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, which it accuses of poll-rigging, the AFP reported.
The death has the potential to spark further violence and reinvigorate Khan’s movement, which had lost steam since his workers and followers of a populist cleric stormed the state broadcaster in the capital in September.
TV footage showed PTI workers clashing with supporters of Sharif as well as with riot police, who baton-charged them as parts of Faisalabad came to a standstill.
Nabeela Ghazanfar, a spokeswoman for police in Punjab province, told AFP: “One protester has been killed and five others injured including two policemen.
“The Punjab police chief has issued strict orders not to let anybody take the law into their hands.”
A government spokesperson said police were searching for the shooter.
