Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi. SCREENSHOT
ISLAMABAD:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Thursday announced that he will take his street campaign to Karachi on January 9 to mobilize party supporters and convey the message of incarcerated party founder Imran Khan.
Days after concluding a tough three-day visit to Lahore aimed at launching the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) street movement, Afridi wrote on X: “Friday January 9! Karachi, Sindh, are you ready?
The KP chief minister said he would visit Karachi “with Imran Khan’s message” and meet “all friends of the party”.
Afridi had earlier hinted that Karachi would be his next destination as part of efforts to galvanize PTI workers across the country after the launch of the street movement.
His announcement followed a turbulent visit to Lahore, during which he attempted to address supporters at Liberty Chowk, but was unable to do so after police cordoned off all access roads by setting up pickets.
During the same visit, Afridi addressed PTI lawmakers in the Punjab Assembly, an appearance marked by altercations between members of his entourage and security officials. Several heated exchanges between PTI leaders and journalists were also observed.
He was barred from entering the cantonment area to meet party leaders and was also barred from going to Catering Street, which had been closed before his arrival. Afridi then visited Zaman Park amid heavy police deployment, while there were also reports of PTI supporters being arrested during the tour.
On Monday, Afridi formally lodged a complaint with Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, objecting to the treatment he received during his visit to Lahore.
In his letter, the KP chief minister said the Punjab government’s adoption of an extraordinary and excessive security posture, including mass detentions and visible theatrics, was “a message of intimidation rather than cooperation”.
