Imran Khan’s party postpones planned Islamabad march to October 4

Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party has postponed ​a planned long march from Peshawar to Islamabad ‌until October 4, the chief minister of the PTI-ruled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Sohail Afridi, told reporters on Friday.

PTI had planned ​to begin the march on September 27 to ​press for the release of Khan, who has ⁠been in jail since 2023. The PTI’s last ​large-scale protest two years ago ended in deadly clashes ​with security forces, Reuters reported.

Earlier this week, Pakistan curbed access to its capital, Islamabad, by blocking major highways with shipping containers and deploying ​tens of thousands of security forces, ahead of the ​march planned by Khan’s supporters.

Party spokesperson Zulfi Bukhari, however, told Reuters ‌that ⁠although they had moved the planned date to October 4, they could launch the march earlier.

“We can now do it whenever we deem fit. The question ​is to the ​government, as ⁠to how long they’re willing to keep the country closed off?”, Bukhari said.

Authorities have ​detained three of Khan’s sisters and hundreds ​of ⁠party activists in recent days, citing a need to maintain public order.

Khan, 73, a former cricket star ousted ⁠by ​parliament in a 2022 no-confidence vote, ​has claimed to be a political prisoner.