PTI Marks Third Anniversary of Imran Khan’s Arrest with Nationwide Protests, Threatens March on Islamabad
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) held protests and rallies across the country on Wednesday to mark the third anniversary of the arrest of party founder Imran Khan. The demonstrations came as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi warned of a march on Islamabad next month if Khan's cases are not heard on merit.
Speaking at a large rally in Peshawar, which the party described as the centrepiece of its campaign, Afridi said the PTI would march towards Islamabad on September 27 if the cases against Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were not decided on merit and restrictions on meetings with lawyers, family members, and political leaders were not lifted. He claimed that Khan could be released "within 30 minutes" if the judiciary were independent and decided his cases on merit.
The chief minister also alleged that meetings with Khan in Adiala Jail had been stopped for the last eight months, and that his sisters had faced mistreatment while attempting to meet him. He urged the youth to come forward for their survival and the security of their future, saying no one from abroad would come to help them.
Police action was reported in several cities. In Lahore, PTI claimed that one MNA, four MPAs, and several workers were arrested. In Karachi, police used teargas and baton-charged protesters, with 10 workers detained, according to Dawn. The Rawalpindi administration denied permission for a PTI rally in Liaquat Bagh.
PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram told Dawn that raids and crackdowns had been launched against party workers in other provinces, particularly Punjab. He said there would be no violence, as "there is no space for violence in PTI," and appealed to voters who supported the party in the February 8 general elections to come out and show solidarity with Khan. He called on the nation to participate fully in the "historic rally" in Peshawar and in peaceful protests across the country, raising their voice for democracy, the Constitution, the rule of law, and the people's right to rule.
Imran Khan's sisters and PTI lawyers reached Adiala jail on Tuesday but were not allowed to meet him, according to reports. Aleema Khan, Imran Khan's sister, said the movement for his release had already begun and hoped the KP chief minister would announce its next phase on August 5.