LAHORE: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Wednesday told its workers to return to their homes “peacefully” after a party worker was killed, 21 others were injured in clashes and the police arrested dozens of others for violating Section 144 of the CrPC.

The deceased was identified as Ali Bilal alias Zil-e-Shah, a resident of Jahangir Town. He was baton-charged violently, resulting in his death, party leaders said.

PTI alleged that shells were even fired from the premises of Aitchison College by the police. Besides, till the filing of the report, a boy was also reportedly killed due to the use of poisonous substances mixed in the water canon meant to disperse the PTI workers.

At least 11 police personnel including two DSPs and one SHO were also injured due to violence by the PTI workers. DSP Sabzazar and Township SHO Hanjarwal, Constables Irfan, Nadeem, Bilal, Waqar, Abdul Sattar, Ali Ismat, Sikandar, and Ali Hamza were among the injured personnel.

The condition of one of the injured people was said to be critical. Police said that the PTI had announced a pro-judiciary rally and gave a call to its workers to gather at party chief Imran Khan’s Zaman Park residence.

The party leaders announced cancelling the rally saying the government wanted bloodshed to make it an excuse for postponing elections. PTI Chairman Imran Khan did not come out of his Zaman Park residence to lead the rally after receiving reports of police arresting and torturing the party activists. In a message on Twitter, he accused the provincial police of brutality and murdering party worker Ali Bilal in clashes near his residence in Lahore.

“Ali Bilal unarmed & our dedicated & passionate PTI worker murdered by Punjab police,” the former prime minister said in a tweet.

“Shameful, this brutality on unarmed PTI workers, who were coming to attend election rally. Pakistan is in the grip of murderous criminals. We will file cases against IG, CCPO & others for murder,” he added. Shortly afterwards, Imran Khan called off the rally alleging that the caretaker administration had launched a crackdown on the PTI supporters not in the interest of law and order, but to avoid elections in Punjab province. In a video address, Imran told party workers “to return home peacefully” as the government was instigating demonstrators “to resort to chaos, but we will not let them succeed”.

He questioned under what law the caretaker government of Punjab imposed the ban considering that “hardly 55 days [are] left” for elections to take place in the province after the dissolution of the provincial assembly. Imran said that the ban was in “brazen contempt of the [Supreme Court’s] SC”. Dozens of party workers and supporters were taken into custody from the Zaman Park area after the Punjab Home Department imposed Section 144 — banning public rallies ahead of the PTI’s election campaign and Aurat March, which were planned for the day.