PTI convoy enters Karak as Afridi says provincial government will not accept policies contrary to KP’s interests
PESHAWAR/LAKKI MARWAT/DI KHAN: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Sunday formally launched Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s long march towards Islamabad, declaring that his party would resist policies it considered harmful to the interests of the province and its people.
The march began from Gandi Chowk on the Peshawar-Karachi Indus Highway in Lakki Marwat, where Afridi arrived by helicopter to lead the mobilisation.
PTI proceeded with the protest despite warnings from the federal government that violent gatherings would not be permitted in the federal capital.
The party has identified the release of its imprisoned founder and former prime minister Imran Khan as a central objective of the march.
Afridi Says PTI Will Not Be ‘Yes-Men’
Addressing supporters during the mobilisation, Afridi said the provincial leadership would not simply endorse policies it believed were against the interests of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
His remarks came amid heightened political tensions between the PTI-led provincial government and the Centre over the protest movement and other political and security issues.
Convoy Reaches Karak District
The march continued towards Islamabad throughout Sunday, with the chief minister leading the convoy.
By late Sunday night, the procession had entered Karak district and reached Hamidan Chowk.
Shortly before 11pm, PTI said Afridi’s convoy was heading towards Karak after the chief minister addressed supporters at a roundabout near the boundary between Bannu and Karak districts.
The movement of the convoy marks the beginning of PTI’s latest major mobilisation towards the federal capital as the party continues to press for Imran Khan’s release.
