ISLAMABAD/LAHORE:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi announced on Thursday that his party will hold a public gathering in Rawalpindi on April 9 highlighting the province’s grievances over federal policies and budget allocations.
Addressing a press conference at KP House Islamabad, Afridi said the provincial government would submit a request for an NOC for the meeting. “If NOC is not granted, each participant will hold the rally at their respective locations,” he added.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is poised to raise the political temperature if it is denied permission to hold a rally on April 9, a date the party says marks “a regime operation” in 2022 that led to the ouster of its now-imprisoned leader Imran Khan’s government.
According to PTI sources, after exhausting all democratic and legal options, the party has now decided in principle to move away from passivity and adopt a ‘firmer stand’.
The source claimed that this would not be the first time the party has shifted gears, but added that this time the stakes are at an all-time high.
The party is fully aware of the “repressive means of the state” that its leaders, especially in Punjab, would face ahead of the rally, he added.
He further said that the rally would test the leadership of KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, who will have to surpass his predecessor Ali Amin Gandapur, under whose leadership PTI, even at short notice, had managed to put up decent shows.
The leader said the party has announced that it would hold a rally wherever it stops if it is denied permission to Liaquat Bagh.
But the real test of leadership would be to stand firm while maximizing the effect of the rally.
He said this effort is designed to ensure PTI a seat at the high table.
He added that the PTI has also decided to partially shift its focus towards other issues facing the people of the country after it was believed that the party’s official narrative was primarily about Imran Khan.
When asked whether the KP chief minister would be able to fill his predecessor’s shoes, he said it is yet to be seen, adding that logistical issues are still under consideration.
However, a leader from Punjab said they were not informed how this effort would be different from earlier ones, which ended up with even more FIRs against them.
He said the party should refrain from testing its parliamentarians to their absolute limits. He added that they were ready to go all the way for Imran Khan without a second thought, but “the unnecessary sacrifices sought from them are not beneficial to anyone”.
He added that the Punjab majority would not be able to attend the meeting for obvious reasons, so the onus would rest entirely with KP.
Meanwhile, meetings with jailed PTI founder Imran Khan continued to remain suspended on Thursday as authorities again stopped party leaders outside the Adiala jail.
