ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said on Monday a planned protest march to the capital had been delayed to Thursday, a day after the ex-premier had said the movement toward the capital would resume on Tuesday.
Khan’s march on the capital was suspended in Wazirabad, a district in eastern Punjab province, after a gunman opened fire, wounding him and killing one of his supporters on Thursday. Thirteen others were injured.
Khan said the march would pick up again from Wazirabad on Tuesday and he would join it after it reached Rawalpindi, the neighboring city to Islamabad.
On Monday, PTI senior leader Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said on Twitter the “long march” would resume from Wazirabad at 2pm on Wednesdayinstead of Tuesday.
Just hours later, Senator Faisal Javed Khan, who was also wounded in Thursday’s gun attack, announced a new date for the relaunch of the march.
The announcement of delays in the movement’s resumption came as PTI supporters had blocked the Lahore and Peshawar motorways to Islamabad, as well as many other roads around the capital, to protest the attack on the former premier. In Rawalpindi, protesters set tires on fire and blocked the city’s main artery, Murree Road, while long queues of traffic were seen on different roads of Islamabad leading to the Grand Trunk Road, another highway connecting the country.
Islamabad police said in a statement it had dispatched capital police and paramilitary Rangers troops to the protest sites after the Islamabad motorway was blocked. Police have also requested the federal government to issue instructions to provincial governments to keep the motorways and roads leading to the airport open.
Islamabad police warned political activists against staging demonstrations in the capital without permission.
“All political people are requested to protest at the designated place with the permission of the administration,” police said.
In the eastern city of Lahore, the PTI staged a protest demonstration outside the Governor House, demanding the registration of the police first information report (FIR) in the attack on the party chief.
Addressing the protesters, provincial health minister Dr. Yasmin Rashid said thousands had gathered outside the Governor House to express solidarity with ex-premier Khan.
PTI senior leader Asad Umar shared a breakdown of the planned long march on Twitter:
The Rawalpindi district administration announced educational institutions would remain closed for two days in view of the ongoing political situation.
“Due to the prevailing law and order situation of the country, the competent authority has decided that all education institutions (government as well as private) situated in Tehsil Rawalpindi shall remain closed for two days (Nov 8 and Nov 9),” a notification issued by the deputy commissioner on Monday said.
During demonstrations in Rawalpindi, one protesters was electrocuted to death after he climbed up an electric pylon.
