ISLAMABAD: Despite hurdles and road blockades placed by police which has brought life in twin cities to a standstill ahead of the protest, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Thursday vowed to hold a mammoth protest demonstration at D-Chowk at the call given by jailed party founding chairman Imran Khan.

Khan has called for the protest on October 4 (today), prompting Islamabad’s security agencies to implement strict measures.

In Rawalpindi, police and relevant agencies have been placed on high alert, conducting raids to apprehend both known and unidentified PTI leaders and activists linked to protests on September 28.

The Rawalpindi police have been assigned special tasks to manage the upcoming protest, with plans to seal off major entry points between Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Locations such as Rawat Chowk, Khanna Bridge on the Islamabad Expressway, Gulzar-e-Quaid, and Faizabad Interchange will be fortified with police barricades and containers starting Thursday night.

In a video message, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said that he along with thousands of Imran Khan’s supporters would reach D-Chowk no matter how many days it takes.

He said that the party is going to hold peaceful protest and the city administration would be held responsible if it tried to stop the protesters from holding a rally at D-Chowk.

“Let me make it clear that we’re peaceful protesters and we will reach D-chowk as this is the call given by our leader Imran Khan,” he added.

Speaking at a presser, PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said that the incumbent regime does not have the mandate to approve the constitutional package.

He said that the protest is to express solidarity with the upright judges and against the so-called constitutional package, which is being done to bring an independent judiciary under control.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024