Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf supporters will march towards Islamabad on September 27 if “justice” is not provided to the party's founding chairman and incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province Chief Minister Suhail Afridi has announced.
Afridi made the announcement while addressing a large public gathering of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters in Peshawar on Wednesday on the eve of Khan completing three years in prison.
The provincial chief minister said the party's first demand is that cases against the former prime minister and his wife be fixed for hearing and decided on merit, while the second demand is the restoration of meetings with their legal team, doctors, relatives and party leaders.
He claimed that if justice is delivered, Khan can be released “within 30 minutes”, otherwise people from across the country will march to Islamabad on September 27. Afridi said the PTI is seeking justice, not charity, and maintained that the party will continue its struggle through constitutional and democratic means, including peaceful protests.
Welcoming supporters from across Pakistan, he said people from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan have gathered to express solidarity with Khan and that the large turnout reflects his continued popularity.
He reiterated the PTI’s stance that Khan was removed from office through an “external conspiracy, aided by internal collaborators”, after he refused to compromise on Pakistan’s sovereignty.
He alleged that the 26th and 27th constitutional amendments have weakened the judiciary and claimed that courts are no longer able to dispense justice independently. The 26th amendment capped the country's chief justice's tenure for three years, while the 27th amendment created a new position of the Chief of Defence Forces and set up a constitutional court.
Protesters take out rallies across Pakistan, over 100 arrested
Over 100 supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan have been arrested as rallies were held across Pakistan to mark the completion of three years of his imprisonment on Wednesday.
PTI supporters gathered in several cities, carrying party flags and chanting slogans in support of the former prime minister. Reports indicated that police dispersed protesters and detained several demonstrators in parts of Punjab and Sindh. Video footage circulated on social media showed riot police using force against the protesters. Some journalists covering the rally were also thrashed by police, prompting protests from media bodies. PTI Punjab general secretary Chaudhry Bilal Ejaz said five party lawmakers were among 25 others arrested in Lahore.
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