PESHAWAR: Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Khan Afridi has said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) planned march towards Islamabad will proceed despite road blockades and other security measures.
Addressing a press conference at the Chief Minister’s House on Friday, Afridi said the party would come out for the protest and would not be deterred by obstacles placed along the routes.
He criticised the installation of nails on roads near the K-P boundary, saying such measures could create the impression that the province was being separated from the rest of the country.
Afridi questioned what he described as a growing narrative portraying K-P as being threatened by other provinces. He alleged that officials and police personnel from other provinces were entering K-P and creating difficulties for the provincial administration.
The chief minister also claimed that some K-P ministers had been taken away by unidentified people in plain clothes. He said such developments were contributing to a perception that the province was being pushed in a different direction.
Afridi further criticised the closure of the provincial secretariat following a reported security alert. He questioned the need to suspend government operations in an area that, according to him, was already under tight security.
He said he personally reopened the mosque inside the secretariat after it was closed over security concerns and offered prayers there. He also inspected parts of the premises and urged people in the province not to be intimidated.
Meanwhile, the PTI political committee was discussing a proposal to postpone the Islamabad march until October 5. No final decision had been announced at the time of the report.
Afridi said further consultations would be held before the party formally announces whether the protest would be delayed.
After addressing the press conference, the chief minister departed for Charsadda to attend a meeting.
