Web Desk: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has decided to defer its planned Sept. 27 long march to Oct. 5, according to party sources, after a meeting in Peshawar reviewed preparations and the political situation surrounding the protest.
The reported decision comes a day after PTI publicly maintained that it was prepared to proceed with the Sept. 27 march. On Thursday, PTI information secretary Shaukat Yousafzai said the party had not decided to call off the protest and would continue preparations for what he described as a peaceful demonstration.
According to the sources cited in the material, PTI leaders discussed the proposed change during a meeting in Peshawar and agreed to move the march to Oct. 5.
However, the party is expected to formally announce the new date after consulting Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, who are part of the opposition’s wider political consultations. Earlier this week, opposition leaders had also discussed fixing the date for entering Islamabad through mutual consultation.
The reported postponement comes as PTI’s plans have remained under discussion within the party. Some PTI leaders had raised the possibility of delaying the march, while a party spokesperson said no such proposal was formally under consideration at that stage.
Before the latest reported decision, Yousafzai said there was no plan to cancel the march and insisted that the party was fully prepared.
He said the demonstration would remain peaceful and that provincial government resources would not be used for the event. He also indicated that negotiations with the federal government could affect the party’s position, but said PTI would not end the protest without securing progress on its demands.
Yousafzai had further warned that the party would hold a sit-in wherever authorities blocked the protesters’ route rather than seeking the removal of roadblocks.
The reported change in schedule comes amid heightened security preparations in Islamabad and parts of Punjab.
The federal government has authorised the deployment of Pakistan Rangers in Islamabad and several Punjab districts through Oct. 5 in connection with security arrangements surrounding the planned protest.
Punjab authorities had also sought Rangers deployment in Rawalpindi, Attock, Jhelum and Mianwali, while preparations were underway in the capital and surrounding areas ahead of the anticipated mobilisation.
PTI’s original Sept. 27 march was announced as part of its campaign demanding the release of party founder Imran Khan. The party’s plans have since been subject to continued consultations over logistics, security arrangements and negotiations with the government.
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