Pakistan’s information minister, Marriyum Aurangzeb, harassed in London

Marriyum Aurangzeb, Pakistan’s information minister, was recently heckled at a café in London. She has blamed ex-prime minister Imran Khan’s “hate and divisive politics” as the reason behind the backlash against her.

A video of the incident has gone viral on social media where a group of people, believed to be the supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which is Imran Khan’s party, are seen harassing the minister.

Another video was also uploaded where people follow Aurangzeb and chanting “chorni chorni” (thief) at her. A woman filming the incident is also heard saying, “makes grand claims on television there and she does not have a dupatta on her head.”

The Pakistani minister called out the people behind the chaos and said, “Sad to see the toxic impact IK’s politics of hate & divisiveness has had on our brothers & sisters.” She also added that despite being heckled, she stayed and answered every question the crowd had for her.

She received a lot of praise for her composure during the incident which took place when she was on her way back from New York after attending the 77^th session of UN General Assembly.

The minister also wrote on Twitter: “Sadly, they are victims of IK’s propaganda. We will continue our work to counter IK’s toxic politics & bring people together.”

Ahsan Iqbal, a fellow minister, condemned the incident and wrote: “Most deplorable, condemnable and shameful act by PTI hooligans. These were Hitler’s tactics. Imran is a fascist and turning his followers into street gangs. Well done @Marriyum_A you showed grace & faced them boldly.”

He added that the series of events was a “shameful act by PTI hooligans”. Defence minister of Pakistan, Khawaja Asif, said, “The times of some of our classes have not changed even after going to Britain. These people are representing the lowest level of our society. Giving this colour to political differences is a sign of bad training and a trend that is the height of intolerance. The violent trend in politics after Madhhab will destroy our society.”