Pakistan: Imran Khan’s Party, PTI Plans Major Protest at Islamabad’s D-Chowk on Oct 15

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has announced another protest at Islamabad’s D-Chowk on October 15, the day when the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit will start, ARY News reported. PTI announced the decision after the party held its political committee meeting. PTI’s central information secretary, Sheikh Waqas Akram, said a ‘powerful’ protest would be held at D-Chowk in Islamabad on October 15. He announced PTI’s decision in a post shared on X.

He said that PTI’s protests in Punjab have been called off and called for the release of PTI workers, leaders, and Members of Provincial Assembly (MPAs) detained in Punjab, ARY News reported.

The Imran Khan-founded party called for an end to ‘unlawful’ raids and arrests by the federal and Punjab government. Sheikh Waqas Akram stated that the PTI chairman’s life is under threat due to the actions of the government, which have ‘stripped’ him of basic human rights.

Akram also accused the government of oppression and violence, stressing that PTI will not back down. He further said, “The entire Pakistan will take to the streets on October 15, if Imran Khan is not granted access to basic rights, family, and party leaders,” the report said.

The SCO Summit is set to be held in Islamabad from October 15-16. Earlier, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated that the allegations were being made against the government and attempts were made to create chaos at a time when the Chinese Premier was scheduled to pay a bilateral visit to the country.

He called the PTI’s recent protest a replica of the 2014 sit-in by the party and asserted that the repeat of a “gory tale” would not be allowed at any cost, according to ARY News report.

He said, “Such incidents are a replica of 2014-15 incidents when a sit-in was staged for months and was not called off despite the announcement of the Chinese president’s visit to Pakistan without bothering about its impact on the country’s image and national economy… We will not allow it to be repeated. We will not tolerate it at any rate, at any cost. This is my promise. I will not let it happen.”

(Inputs from ANI)

ALSO READ: Balochistan On Edge Before SCO Summit: Could China Influence Pakistan’s Fate? | NewsX Exclusive