Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks during the Pakistan-Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on February 24, 2021. Khan’s supporters marched toward Islamabad on Monday. File Photo by Chamila Karunarathe/EPA-EFE
Nov. 25 (UPI) — Thousands of Imran Khan supporters marched closer to the capital of Islamabad on Monday demanding his release from prison as authorities braced to prevent the crowd from entering the city.
A convoy led by the former prime minister’s wife Busha Bibi and Pakistani legislator Ali Amin Gandapur continued to move the supporters toward the city. Khan, who Pakistan authorities have imprisoned for more than a year, met with some of his supporters from jail on Monday.
Leaders of Khan’s PTI Party, including chair Gohar Ali Khan and lawmaker Ali Muhammad Khan, visited Khan at the Adiala Jail in nearby Rawalpindi. Despite being driven from power in 2022 and jailed for more than a year, Khan continues to have a strong opposition influence in Pakistani politics.
PTI information secretary Shaikh Waqas Akram said more than 70,000 are participating in the march, according to The Guardian.
“The police in Punjab and other places have fired rubber bullets, expired shells, and stun grenades at us,” Akram said. “They are trying to stop a peaceful protest for the release of Khan.”
Police had clashed with Khan supporters overnight into Monday while attempting the fortify the city by using large container vans to block major roads.
Federal minister Ahsan Iqbal blamed Khan of attempting to get around Pakistan’s justice system by rallying his base to force his release despite his convictions in court.
“His release hinges on clearance from the courts,” Iqbal said, according to The Guardian. “He will have to clear himself of the cases registered against him. Without this, the government cannot release him.”