Former Pakistani premier’s party resumes its ‘long march’ to capital

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) – Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan's party resumed its anti-government march toward the capital Islamabad on Thursday, after it was halted following an assassination attempt on him on the same day last week.

The march resumed from the point where Khan was attacked and wounded in the Wazirabad district of northeastern Punjab province governed by his center-right Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.

Khan, who was shot in both legs and received four bullets and shrapnel, is not leading the march. Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the party's vice chairman and a former foreign minister, is leading the march in his absence.

Addressing a sizeable number of protesters via video link from his home in the Zaman Park neighborhood of Lahore, Punjab's capital, Khan said his "long march" will continue "whatever comes."

“I am not fighting for myself. I am fighting for the rule of law and justice in this country. That’s why all the forces have got united against me,” Khan contended.

“The attack on me was planned and aimed at getting rid of me. But let me tell them that until I am alive, I will continue this struggle. I won’t step back,” he added.

- Fate of march hangs in balance

Hundreds of PTI supporters protested the assassination attempt on their leader by blocking several roads in Rawalpindi and Lahore, including a major highway connecting Lahore and Islamabad.

The blockade suspended traffic from and to Islamabad, as the stick-wielding protesters burned tyres and placed chairs and wooden barriers to block the roads at several points.

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, for his part, warned that the public may "react" to a "handful" PTI workers' continuous road blockade.

In a statement, he accused the provincial governments of Punjab and northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, both of which are governed by the PTI, of "facilitating" the protesters' roadblocks.

Khan, who kicked off the "long march" on Oct. 28 in an attempt to press the government for snap elections, was attacked last Thursday by what appeared to be a lone gunman, who fired a volley of bullets at him.

At least one person was killed and another 13 injured in the brazen attack. The suspected attacker is in police custody and being interrogated.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government, rejecting Khan's demand, says there will be no early voting and that the next elections will be held as scheduled in late 2023.

The march is likely to reach the garrison city of Rawalpindi, which borders Islamabad, in the third week of this month, as the PTI has not given a specific date for protesters' arrival near the capital.

Khan says he will join and lead the march once it reaches Rawalpindi.

Many see the appointment of the new chief of the country's powerful army, which is due before Nov. 29, as the source of this indecision. Khan accuses current Army Chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa of "playing neutral" during a successful no-trust move against him in April.

Khan was deposed as prime minister after parliament passed a no-confidence vote.

He blames his unceremonious ouster on a US-backed conspiracy, an allegation that Islamabad and Washington have repeatedly refuted.

Khan, the country's 19th prime minister, took office in August 2018 and ruled for just over three and a half years.