Section 144 Misused.

The government in Punjab is not making any attempts at hiding its intentions to target the PTI, which is extremely concerning and only pushes the country further into a state of chaos and instability. On Wednesday, PTI Chairman Imran Khan was forced to call off the party's rally in Lahore in the wake of the Punjab government's crackdown on participants following the imposition of Section 144 in the provincial capital.

Kicking off its election campaign, the PTI was planning to take out a rally from Zaman Park to Data Darbar and Mr. Khan along with other leaders were expected to be in attendance. Following the imposition of Section 144 however, the launch of the canvassing drive has been postponed until Saturday. It is also extremely unfortunate to see that the government launched a crackdown on PTI workers, with some workers being picked up, water cannons being used against protestors, and some instances of police officers smashing car windows as well.

These instances are very reminiscent of the tactics employed by the Punjab government last year ahead of the PTI long march. It is an obvious attempt at controlling the support and street power of...