Pak minister Naqvi warns Imran Khan’s party against planned Islamabad protest

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Monday warned former prime minister Imran Khan's party against holding a planned protest in Islamabad on September 27, saying street agitation would lead the party to a “dead-end”.

The warning came ahead of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's planned march towards the capital to demand the release of party founder Imran Khan.

The 73-year-old cricketer-turned-politician has been incarcerated since 2023, when he was arrested after conviction in a corruption case. Currently, he is lodged at the high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.

Naqvi on Monday said that Khan’s party would not be allowed to enter Islamabad and shut down the city for several days.

“We have clearly told them that they can never achieve anything through such drama, and I will say again that there is still time; they should not go into this situation,” Naqvi said.

“That possibility does not exist,” he said, adding that authorities would plug “all loopholes” to prevent protesters from entering the capital and advised the party to “not enter a dead-end street”.

Naqvi also referred to an Islamabad High Court order directing the government to ensure peace in the capital, and claimed that a majority of Khan’s party leadership did not support the planned protest.

“Do not harm yourself and your workers,” he told the party, urging it to adopt a different approach.

Asked about measures to find a long-term solution to repeated protests by Khan’s party, Naqvi said, “This time we will find a permanent solution; we will not leave it halfway.”

On reports of a possible ban on the party, he said the government would seek a “once-and-for-all solution”, adding that “we can't afford this every time”.

Naqvi also did not rule out imposing governor's rule in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led government of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi is in power.

On demands to shift Khan to a private hospital for treatment, Naqvi said this could be done if recommended by doctors who examine him regularly.

“As for the treatment that is prescribed under the law, we will do everything according to the law. But we will not do it simply because they are demanding it,” he said.

Khan has earlier complained of an eye ailment and has been shifted to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) multiple times for medical interventions.

Khan's supporters allege that his health has deteriorated due to lack of proper health care, a charge rejected by the jail authorities.

The Supreme Court had ordered on August 18 to shift him to a private hospital for treatment, but he was instead taken to PIMS and returned to jail after various medical tests at the hospital.

Meanwhile, the government was deploying security measures in anticipation of the September 27 protest, including placing shipping containers along roads and bringing in police personnel from other provinces.

More than 22,000 security personnel led by eight senior police officers were to be deployed in Islamabad and over 30,000 in Attock district, which links Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with Punjab, according to sources.

Rawalpindi police have separately sought 9,000 additional personnel to assist the local administration, sources said.

Khan’s party is not the only group planning protests. The right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami party launched a protest against rising petroleum prices on Sunday and was heading towards Islamabad from Karachi.

The Kissan Ittehad of farmers has also announced a sit-in in the capital this week seeking relief for farmers.