ISLAMABAD — More than 5,000 supporters of imprisoned former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan began a days-long march toward Islamabad on Sunday to demand his release, after talks between the government and the opposition fell through, according to wire and local reports.
The caravan, traveling in trucks, buses and cars, departed from Lakki Marwat district in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where Khan’s party holds power, with overnight stops planned along the route to the capital. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, a staunch Khan supporter, is leading the march, speaking from a specially designed container truck emblazoned with a large portrait of Khan.
The second round of negotiations, which began Saturday evening at Parliament House, had continued for several hours before ending in deadlock in the early hours of Sunday. The main disagreement was over access to Khan: the PTI wanted its representatives to meet him and sought his transfer to a hospital where his personal doctors could examine him, while the government wanted the PTI to first cancel the planned march, according to Dawn.
Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas confirmed the failure shortly before 3 a.m., telling reporters “deadlock.” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi blamed Afridi for the talks’ failure, warning he would be held responsible for any loss of life during the march. Authorities have erected roadblocks, using containers, at the entrances to Islamabad and inside the city.
Under a published multi-day itinerary, the caravan halted for the night near Karak on Sunday and resumes Monday, with contingents from Karak, Kohat, Peshawar and Charsadda expected to join along the way before participants gather at Khairabad on October 8, Dawn reported.
Khan, 73, who was ousted in a 2022 no-confidence vote, has been in jail since 2023 on corruption and other charges that he and his party say are politically motivated. Authorities have detained three of his sisters and hundreds of party activists in recent days, Reuters reported.
