Pakistan creates checkpoints to oppose the demonstration of the former premier

The march sparked great fears of violence between the country’s biggest opposition leader, Khan, and the security forces. Earlier in the day, riot police fired tear gas and hundreds of stones at protesters as they tried to cross a blocked bridge near Lahore to board buses bound for Islamabad. Dozens of protesters and dozens of policemen were injured.

Khan, a former cricket star who is an Islamist politician, served as prime minister for more than three and a half years until he was dismissed in a no-confidence motion in parliament last month. Since then she has held demonstrations with thousands of people across the country.

Although Wednesday’s demonstration was banned the day before, Khan insists the demonstration will be massive and peaceful and won’t end until the government agrees to hold new elections this year, not in 2023 as planned. The organizers plan to transport people by car and bus to the Islamabad city border and then on foot.

Khan said his dismissal was the result of a US conspiracy following a conspiracy with his successor, Shahbaz Sharif, to which the government promised to respond sharply if Khan violated the ban. Washington also denied having any role in Pakistan’s domestic politics.

At night, the authorities blocked the main street of the city with containers filled with dirt and similar obstacles appeared on other streets in the city. Khan urged his supporters to remove the containers and avoid any blockages to enter the city. “I’ll be with you on Wednesday afternoon,” he said at a demonstration in front of Parliament.

Khan, along with the leaders of the Tehreek-e-Insaf party, has already gathered thousands of supporters in Peshawar, the capital of the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, governed by his party. From there, he must cross the provincial border bridge blocked by the government before his followers gather in a suburb of Islamabad.

The government cracked down on supporters ahead of the march and arrested hundreds across the country. They deployed additional police and paramilitary forces on highways and in Islamabad to stop the demonstration, and tractor trailers were parked in both lanes in many districts.

The measures were announced after a police officer was killed in a raid on the home of a prominent Han supporter in Lahore. Interior Minister Rana Sanaulala said Khan would be arrested if the protest continued. Special forces are gathering near roadblocks.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court of Pakistan was considering a motion to lift the blockade on Islamabad. Officials say the government will consider lifting the ban if Khan agrees to provide a written assurance that his demonstration will be peaceful and will close in a public park.