ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former prime minister Imran Khan has announced a series of pro-judicial protests to begin on October 2 in Mianwali, Faisalabad and Bahawalpur. Addressing his supporters through a statement issued from Adiala jail on Monday, Khan said, “We will protest at Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore on October 5 and gather at D-Chowk [in Islamabad] on October 4 on Friday.” Khan warned of attempts to “crush the PTI” through the so-called “London Plan”, adding that his arrest was part of a larger plan. “They want to break me in prison, but I’m not afraid and neither should people be,” he remarked. Stressing that PTI’s protests would remain peaceful, he said, “We have always protested peacefully but this system has failed to protect us.” Khan also highlighted the treatment of women in the party, mentioning, “Our women are languishing in jail. An 80-year-old woman was accused but nobody cared.” Khan expressed support for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, who led the march towards Islamabad, saying Gandapur had “awakened the people of the province” and reiterated his call for revolution. “Ali Amin was right; the revolution will come and our message has reached the public,” Khan added. The PTI leader reiterated his party’s commitment to defend justice and continue its “struggle for freedom”. He also mentioned his wife Bushra Bibi, who has been imprisoned for several months, and accused the government of trying to weaken him by arresting him. Meanwhile, the federal government has decided to file sedition charges against PTI leaders for their speeches at a rally in Sangjani, Islamabad on September 8. According to sources, the Law Ministry will invoke Section 196 of the Penal Code, which allows charges of sedition to be laid without the need for an arrest warrant. The federal attorney general and the law ministry have both approved the charges, with the matter now awaiting cabinet approval before formal charges are laid against the PTI leadership.
