‘Strikingly identical’ call statistics between the March 8 and May 9 riots: The attacks on May 9 were carefully planned and carried out simultaneously at specific locations, according to the IG of Punjab, Dr. Usman Anwar.

According to Dr. Usman Anwar, Inspector General of Police for the Punjab, the phone logs from the riots on March 8 and May 9 reveal striking parallels, allowing for the identification and subsequent arrest of the culprits.
PTI activists and supporters were holding a gathering near party chairman Imran Khan’s Zaman Town mansion in Lahore on March 8 to kick off the party’s election campaign, and police reportedly opened fire, killing one man named Ali Bilal alias Zillay Shah.
Later, the Punjab police chief said that PTI activist Ali Bilal’s death was the result of a “road accident” and that the PTI had “unfortunately misinterpreted” the incident.
The IGP of Punjab, accompanied by other high-ranking authorities, addressed a news conference in Lahore today, where they stated that, out of all the calls analyzed, 154 were discovered to be duplicates and that Yasmin Rashid was responsible for 41 of them.
In addition, he said that 170 people participating in the incidents had their names uncovered by combing through WhatsApp chats.
The IGP of Punjab elaborated on the events of May 9 by saying that the attacks had been carefully planned and carried out simultaneously at specified targets such the Jinnah House, the GHQ, and Radio Pakistan.
“We have record of each call made during these incidents and are presenting them as evidence in court,” he continued.
The Pakistan Air Force, Dr. Anwar noted, was also a target of these attacks. He condemned the online dissemination of falsehoods targeting news organizations and voiced worry over the vandalism of tributes to martyrs on May 9.
A Lahore anti-terrorism court’s decision to release PTI leader Yasmin Rashid in the Jinnah House attack case prompted the Punjab police to announce earlier in the day that they would be appealing the decision to the country’s highest court.
On Sunday, the police department published a statement via their official Twitter account, promising that “all conspirators, planners, and perpetrators of the May 9 incident, including Dr Yasmin Rashid, would be brought to justice.”
The statement also reaffirmed that “scientific lines” are being followed in the probe.
Because law enforcement was denied the opportunity to present forensic evidence, a challenge has been filed against the court order. It was also said that once the High Court issued its ruling, the ATC’s decision would become final.
On May 9, protestors claiming allegiance to the PTI destroyed public and private property in an unprecedented act of vandalism. They also attacked the Army’s General Headquarters in Rawalpindi and the Lahore Corps Commander’s residence, a historic building that was once the Lahore residence of the nation’s founder, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Hours earlier, on the orders of the National Accountability Bureau, paramilitary Rangers men had arrested the party chairman in the Al-Qadir Trust corruption investigation, which had been renamed the £190 million National Crime Agency affair.
After the riots, the former ruling party’s leaders and employees were subjected to a severe crackdown. Many prominent PTI members have distanced themselves from the party since the arrests of several top officials.