Peshawar: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has decided to postpone the long march scheduled for September 27 to October 5. According to sources, this decision was taken in a meeting of the party’s political committee in Peshawar, where it was agreed to change the date of the protest in view of the current situation.
Sources say that the decision will be officially announced after taking Mehmood Achakzai and Allama Nasir Abbas into confidence. In the meeting, Chief Minister Sohail Afridi requested Barrister Gohar to contact both leaders; however, Barrister Gohar advised him to talk to them himself.
It was agreed in the meeting that Sohail Afridi would call both leaders and inform them of the decision. According to sources, the participants, describing the current situation as sensitive, stressed the need to advance the date of the long march.
This development regarding the change in the date of the long march has come at a time when PTI is making statements on the preparations for the protest and the possibility of negotiations with the government.
Earlier, PTI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Secretary Shaukat Yousafzai had said that no decision has been made to end the long march and the party is ready for the protest. He said that the march will be peaceful and government resources will not be used in it.
Shaukat Yousafzai had also said that if the federal government holds talks, the decision regarding the long march may change; however, this time the protest will not be ended without the demands being met.
He further said that PTI does not need to remove containers or open roads. According to him, wherever roads are blocked, a sit-in will be held.
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