Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has announced plans to hold a large public rally at Minar-e-Pakistan on February 8 and has already submitted a request to the Lahore administration for approval.
According to reports from Express News, the party plans to stage a major event at Greater Iqbal Park.
The party has appointed Chief Organiser Aliya Hamza to oversee the rally, and she has submitted a formal request to the deputy commissioner of Lahore, seeking permission to hold the event at the park.
The request also includes a request for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the authorities.
The organizing committee for the rally includes Aliya Hamza, Malik Ahmad Khan Bhachar (opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly), and Ali Ijaz Butt.
PTI sources have stated that if the authorities do not approve the rally, the party will take to the streets with a nationwide protest.
Yesterday, PTI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) President Junaid Akbar warned of a nationwide campaign against the ruling coalition, citing the government’s failure to resolve political tensions through dialogue.
Speaking to a local news channel, Akbar criticized the government’s interpretation of the opposition’s willingness to negotiate as a sign of weakness.
His comments followed PTI’s decision to skip the fourth round of talks with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led government earlier on Tuesday, effectively putting a halt to the negotiations.
The dialogue process, which had begun in December last year, was aimed at reducing political tensions.
However, PTI blamed the government for not forming judicial commissions to investigate the May 9, 2023, protests and the November 26, 2024, crackdown on PTI protesters in Islamabad.
Akbar, who was recently elected chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), acknowledged that PTI intended to make negotiations work but indicated that the process had stalled. He added that the party would now turn to street protests.
He confirmed PTI’s intention to abandon negotiations in favor of street protests. “Yes, definitely,” he said when asked if the party would now seek solutions on the streets.
He announced a series of protest plans, including district-level demonstrations on February 8 against alleged election rigging and a large-scale protest at Islamabad’s D-Chowk.
The PTI leader stressed that this time, the party would not engage in negotiations during its street protests.
Additionally, Akbar hinted at significant changes within PTI, revealing that the party would replace its current “homeopathic leadership” with hardliners after reorganization in May.
He also mentioned that two new members would soon join Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s provincial cabinet.
