ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday changed the venue for a protest by his political party against the Election Commission of Pakistan, hours after authorities in Islamabad sealed the capital’s Red Zone where the ex-premier had initially said he would hold the demonstration.
The government on Wednesday said Khan was free to demonstrate peacefully but would not be permitted to enter the Red Zone, home to many Western embassies, the Supreme Court and government ministries.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) says its supporters are protesting against chief election commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, who Khan accuses of bias and of taking politically motivated action against the PTI. Khan’s party has demanded that early elections be held under a new CEC.
“Today [Thursday] I am calling all our people to come out in peaceful public protest against CEC & ECP in F9 Park at 6 pm. I will be addressing the gathering between 7:00 — 7:30 pm,” Khan said on Twitter.
In a separate tweet, Khan once again accused the ECP and the CEC of being “in cahoots” with the ruling party Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) “to try a technical knockout against PTI.”
The election commission has repeatedly rejected Khan’s accusations.
This week, the commission also ruled on an 8-year-old case against the PTI, saying the party received millions of dollars in illegal funds from foreign countries, including the United States, the United Arab Emirates, the UK, and Australia. The party denies any wrongdoing.
The ECP’s verdict could lead to a ban on Khan and his PTI which rose to prominence on an anti-corruption drive.
Khan was prime minister from 2018 until April this year when he was forced to step down after losing a parliamentary vote of no-confidence, which he alleges was the result of a US conspiracy. The United States denies this.
Since then, Khan has been rallying his supporters to press for a new election, which new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his coalition government has rejected.