Workers and supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) attempted to march towards Islamabad after answering to chairman Imran Khan’s appeal for a protracted march, pushing over containers and facing tear gas bombardment.
Imran Khan landed by chopper at the Wali Interchange in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. As Imran landed at the junction, PTI activists converged on the chopper, as shown on video. The PTI chief later left for Islamabad from the Wali Interchange in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
As the PTI marchers attempted to squeeze through roadblocks constructed in their path, multiple scuffles broke out between police and demonstrators. To put an end to the PTI’s ‘Azadi March,’ the government has ordered law enforcement to take “all available steps.”
‘Nothing will be able to stop us.’
After landing in Swabi, Imran gave a speech to supporters while holding a Pakistan flag. As the crowd applauded, the PTI chairman added, “No one can stop us from getting to D-Chowk.”
He called the current administration the most corrupt in history, adding that they were terrified of the people, which is why containers were placed. According to Imran, protesters who took part in the Azadi March were detained and mistreated.
Because they “did not fear the people,” Imran claimed, the PTI government did not restrict any of the ruling coalition’s politicians from conducting protests.
He stated the administration was terrified because it had been stealing the country’s resources for 30 years. “From Swabi Interchange, I’d like to deliver a message to the people: no matter what you do, we’ll go to D-Chowk.” Our demonstration will be peaceful, as it has always been.”
Imran claimed that conducting a demonstration was the party’s prerogative, and that he would bring the country together and transform it into a nation. He exhorted people to evacuate their houses, declaring, “This nation will not accept this foreign rule.”
“All Pakistanis, including women, children, families, youth, attorneys, and former army officers,” he said.
The government and Imran Khan both deny that they have reached an agreement.
According to reports, the federal government and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have reached an agreement on the long march to Islamabad.
Marriyum Aurangezeb, the Minister of Information, declared in a tweet that claims of government-PTI negotiations and an agreement are untrue. She maintained that she had formed no deal with the “armed organization that murdered police officers.”
The chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, also dismissed “rumors” and “deliberate deception” that a deal had been made.
“No way!” exclaims the speaker. We’re on our way to Islamabad, and we’re not going to stop. He stated, “We will remain in Islamabad till the dates for the dissolution of the parliament and elections are declared.” Everyone in Islamabad and Rawalpindi was encouraged to join them.
There have been no arrests as of yet
So far, more than 10 PTI workers have been arrested near Batti Chowk, and police have reported that other marchers have also been arrested on the Srinagar Highway. PTI workers have also been arrested in D-Chowk.
At a press briefing, DIG Operations Lahore Sohail Chaudhry said the police had received information in the previous few days that weapons were being transported into the city that may be used to disrupt the peace.
According to a senior cop, police chased five cars near the highway before storming the home of PTI general secretary Zubair Niazi in Lahore. “We discovered guns at his residence.” “It appears they planned to use these weapons during the march,” he continues.
In Numaish Chowrangi, nine PTI workers, including three women, were arrested.
Lal Haveli is embroiled in a conflict
Outside Lal Haveli, the Rawalpindi residence of former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, a big number Pakistani protestors gathered.
A big number of police officers are stationed outside. Hundreds more employees were also detained. Sheikh Rashid will lead a rally from his residence to the city. Imran Khan, the previous governor of Sindh, also came to Lal Haveli’s house on his motorcycle.
Police in Lahore detained Hammad Azhar. Party supporters and police stood by while police attempted to detain Azhar, who was wearing a red cap. The head of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Jamshed Iqbal Cheema, was apprehended.
Shelling is taking place in Lahore.
Police are on heightened alert as a result of the ‘Azadi March.’ Police deployed tear gas and removed obstacles obstructing the streets to disperse PTI workers in Lahore’s Batti Chowk.
The PTI Lahore Chapter has told its members to meet at Batti Chowk and travel to Islamabad from there. Police fired tear gas shells to clear the area after party workers destroyed barriers.
Hammad Azhar, the PTI’s leader, has arrived at Batti Chowk. He got over the barriers and made it to GT Road on his trip to Islamabad.
Police also surrounded former health minister Yasmeen Rashid’s car, preventing her from leaving. She also tried to keep her car keys from being taken away by the officers.
It’s time to make a choice
PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi has extended an invitation to the march to the entire country. “This is a critical juncture in the country’s history, as we must decide whether to become an independent nation or repeat the past 75 years.”
“The last time the country got together to make a decision was in 1974. In a statement, he declared, “The entire nation must now emerge from their houses.”
He argued that only PTI Chairman Imran Khan could solve Pakistan’s problems, and that he should be re-elected.
He warned that if the government tried to block people from joining the PTI’s long march from entering Islamabad, the entire country would turn like Islamabad (a venue for protests).
Fear’s shackles must be shattered
Despite the government’s decision to call a halt to the lengthy march, PTI Chairman Imran Khan has pledged to carry on.
At a news conference in Peshawar on Tuesday, the former prime minister said he will lead the “biggest parade in Pakistan’s history.”
He attacked the PML-N-led administration, accusing the Sharifs of employing military dictatorship tactics.
When asked how many times these parties took to the streets during the PTI government’s mandate, he remarked, “They only remember democracy once they leave office.”
When PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman marched toward Islamabad, the former prime minister inquired about any arrests made by the PTI government.
“The crime minister and his son were convicted, but now they’re making decisions for the country,” he claimed, adding that the PTI had never broken a law in its 26-year history.
The PTI leader argued that it was his democratic right to continue the ‘Azadi March.’ He also threatened officials with vengeance if they issued an illegal order.
The PTI chairman urged his supporters to “break the bonds of fear,” stating that the government would be powerless to prevent the influx of people into Islamabad.