Imran Khan's party march heads for Swabi, where next step awaits
Imran Khan's party took its protest march into Peshawar on Thursday evening, and leader Sohail Afridi says the next stops are Charsadda and Mardan before a big gathering in Swabi. The march, now in its sixth day, demands the release of the jailed former prime minister. Afridi says he will reveal the party's next major move in Swabi.
The protest march led by Imran Khan's party is winding through its home province rather than heading straight for the capital. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi led the convoy into Peshawar on Thursday evening, the fifth day of the march, Dawn reported.
The march began on October 4 in Lakki Marwat to demand the release of Khan, the jailed founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. It was first billed as a march on Islamabad, but the route has changed several times.
The new schedule takes the convoy to Charsadda on Friday and Mardan on Saturday, with all groups heading to Swabi on Sunday, October 11, Samaa TV reported. Party chairman Gohar Khan said gatherings are planned in Mardan and Swabi, after which party leaders will decide what comes next. The Daily Independent, citing party sources, reported that caravans from across the province would arrive in Swabi on October 12.
"There might be some discomfort, but this pain is not greater than the pain Imran Khan is enduring in jail for us," Afridi told supporters at a toll plaza in Peshawar. He said people would be "thrilled" by the plan he will announce in Swabi. Mobile phone and internet service was cut in parts of Peshawar before the convoy arrived, Dawn reported.
Party leaders say they are in no rush. "We are playing a Test match, not a T20 game," party secretary general Salman Akram Raja said, comparing the march to the long form of cricket. He said reaching Islamabad remains a distant prospect and that talks with the government are possible if it shows it is sincere, though no formal contact has taken place.
The government has warned against any protest in Islamabad. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi said earlier this week that the marchers would not be allowed to go past Attock in neighboring Punjab, Firstpost reported. Talks between the party and the government failed before the march, and each side blames the other.
Khan has been in prison since August 2023 after being convicted in several cases. The party says it will not compromise on his medical care or on access to him.
What we know: The march moves to Charsadda and Mardan before a Swabi gathering on Sunday.
What we don't: What Afridi will announce in Swabi, and whether the march will try to reach Islamabad.
Where outlets agree Dawn and Samaa TV both report that the march will hold gatherings in Mardan and then Swabi on October 11, where the party's next step will be decided.
Where they differ Samaa TV says all of the march convoys will head to Swabi on October 11, while the Daily Independent says caravans from across the province will arrive there on October 12.