BBC:
When former prime minister Imran Khan was dragged out of a court house by police on charges of corruption on 9 May 2023, the reaction was unlike anything seen in Pakistan before.
Enraged supporters took to the streets in cities across the country and buildings belonging to Pakistan’s powerful military became the target – a shock to the institution widely known locally as the establishment.
“When he was arrested, our hearts sank. We were crying and didn’t know what to do,” said Hasan, who cycled to a central market in Lahore where Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party had often gathered.
The residence of a lieutenant general in the city had already been set ablaze by then.
On the streets of the capital Islamabad, where Khan was arrested, protesters pulled down street signs, lit fires and threw stones. Scores of military monuments were vandalised.
The military, which has long held sway over governance in the Muslim majority country, swiftly labelled 9 May 2023 a “Black Day”. They have also described the protests as an “attack on the army”.
One year on, many supporters of the former cricket star are still reeling from the physical and emotional wounds of the day’s events.
Hasan was among hundreds arrested for their involvement in the protests. Many of them told BBC Urdu they took to the streets “peacefully” and were not involved in the violence, but were nevertheless held without due process and mistreated while in detention.
