ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party will hold nationwide protests on Friday to demand his release from prison and press for the independence of judiciary, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, a key aide of the former premier, said.
Khan, who has been in jail since August on charges of corruption, treason and attempting to incite a mutiny in the military, has waged an unprecedented campaign of defiance against Pakistan’s military since his ouster in a parliamentary no-trust vote in April 2022. He has accused the then army leadership of orchestrating his ouster together with his political rivals as part of a United States-backed “foreign conspiracy.” The military, Khan’s rivals and Washington have repeatedly denied this.
His PTI party, which had struggled to organize rallies in the country since last year to build public pressure for his release, held public gatherings in Islamabad and Lahore this month.
“Remember, Pakistanis, Imran Khan will only be released when the judiciary is free,” Gandapur said in a video message on Sunday. “So we will come out this Friday in every city and village across Pakistan and peacefully demand protection of the constitution, independence of the judiciary and Imran Khan’s release.”
The PTI has vowed not to accept any of the government’s proposed 53 constitutional amendments that experts and political opponents say are aimed at asserting the executive’s authority over key judicial appointments. The proposed amendments are expected to establish a federal constitutional court, raise the retirement age of superior judges by three years and modify the process for the appointment of chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
The amendments have also invited protests and anger from Pakistan’s legal fraternity, who have vowed to take to the streets in protest if the government manages to pass them with a two-thirds majority. The government, on the other hand, has vowed to build a “wider consensus” on the constitutional amendments.
Gandapur said the party will also hold a large public gathering in Mianwali city this Sunday, vowing he would partake in it. He also said the PTI would then hold a rally in the garrison city of Rawalpindi but did not share the exact date of the event.
“I am telling the entire nation that now you have to lead this movement,” the KP chief minister said. “With every passing moment, you have to become a part of this movement.”
The PTI’s rally in Lahore on Saturday ended rather abruptly after authorities cut the electricity supply shortly after a 6pm deadline provided by the administration. The Lahore administration had allowed the PTI to hold the rally from 3-6pm in the Kahna area of the city, subject to compliance with 43 conditions. One of the conditions was that the party’s supporters would not cause unrest or chant anti-state slogans.
While the government called the public gathering a “flop show,” the party alleged their rally had been marred by underhanded tactics which included blocking roads and preventing the PTI from holding the rally for an extended time.
The PTI says it has been facing a state-backed crackdown and the mass arrest of its members and supporters for standing by Khan. Pakistani authorities deny the allegations.
The crackdown against the opposition party began after people carrying its party flags attacked and damaged government and military installations on May 9, 2023, after Khan’s brief arrest that day in a graft case.
Hundreds of PTI workers and leaders were arrested following the May 9 riots and many remain behind bars as they await trial. The military has also initiated trials of at least 103 people accused of involvement in the violence.
