PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday staged a rally in Peshawar, its first major political show after ten months, where the party’s top leadership renewed demands for the release of PTI founder Imran Khan, denounced the February 8 election as a “stolen mandate,” rejected the 26th Constitutional Amendment, and vowed that no new military operation would be allowed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The rally, titled by the PTI leaders “Release of the Founder and True Freedom,” drew crowds from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and the federal capital, signalling PTI’s attempt to project national unity. Women leaders, including Imran Khan’s sisters Aleema Khan, Uzma Khan and Noreen Niazi, also joined the gathering.
At the outset, PTI Senator Faisal Javed Khan announced that video messages from Imran Khan would be played. A recording of the PTI founder, apparently from an earlier gathering, was broadcast on big screens in which he thanked supporters for their steadfastness, accused opponents of conspiring to eliminate him from politics through fabricated cases, and vowed to continue the fight for justice, dignity and democracy. “They cannot win elections, so they try to remove me from the match. The more you push me against the wall, the more I will fight back. Together, we will win this World Cup of true freedom for Pakistan,” he told supporters.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur delivered a fiery speech, declaring that Haqeeqi Azadi meant justice for Imran Khan, his wife, PTI leaders, workers and 250 million Pakistanis. He demanded that the judiciary deliver justice in line with the Constitution. “Imran Khan, his wife and the people must be given justice,” he said, warning that PTI’s struggle would continue until “true freedom” was achieved.
Gandapur categorically rejected any new military operation in the province. “We will not allow any new operation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, nor will we support displacement of our people. The federal government must hear this clearly, the KP government will not back operations or forced displacements,” he declared. He urged federal institutions to engage Afghanistan through dialogue to resolve terrorism issues, stressing, “We do not want war and will raise our voice against it.” At one stage during his address, workers threw bottles towards the stage and shouted against him, momentarily disrupting his speech. Gandapur, while directly addressing the Army Chief, urged him to resolve Imran Khan’s issue as a matter of national stability. He accused the federal government of stealing KP’s water and mineral resources, warning that PTI would not compromise on provincial rights.
The chief minister’s stance on operations has seen shifts in recent months. In July, following his party’s criticism of military action in Bajaur, Gandapur had initially opposed such operations, calling them harmful for civilian trust, but later appeared to endorse “targeted operations” in a subsequent statement. More recently, he remarked that drone strikes, mortar fire and airstrikes were the army’s constitutional right, which the provincial government could not prevent. Nonetheless, at Saturday’s rally, Gandapur reiterated categorical opposition to any new large-scale operation in KP. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said the February 8 election results had been stolen and the 26th amendment had undermined judicial independence. “Today’s rally shows that despite Imran Khan’s imprisonment, millions stand with him. Injustice against Imran Khan is injustice against the nation,” he said.
Senior lawyer and PTI secretary general Salman Akram Raja, who recently met Imran Khan in Adiala Jail, told the crowd that Khan had vowed never to bow before oppression. He also presented the rally’s resolutions, which categorically rejected the February 8 “vote theft,” repudiated the 26th amendment, demanded an independent judiciary and free media, condemned enforced disappearances in Balochistan, rejected any new military operation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and insisted that provincial resources such as water and minerals must benefit local people first. The resolutions further declared Imran Khan’s imprisonment unjust and his release the “liberation of the nation.”
Former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser said KP had borne the brunt of decades of conflict and could not afford another. “We will not allow any new operation. Disputes with Afghanistan must be resolved through jirgas, trade and dialogue, not through war,” he said, warning that PTI would only accept elections under a neutral caretaker. MNA Ali Muhammad Khan told the gathering that Peshawar had once again proved itself to be Imran Khan’s city and said the PTI founder was being punished for speaking for the Muslim Ummah and raising his voice for Palestine and Kashmir. Sanaullah Khan Masti Khel from Punjab praised KP’s resilience, linked PTI’s struggle to Pakistan’s economic collapse, and said the country was facing rising poverty and unemployment. Balochistan PTI President Dawood Shah Kakar vowed that his province’s workers would not abandon Imran Khan despite “repression”, while Sindh PTI president Haleem Adil Sheikh said the party owed Khan for his sacrifices and warned that any attempt to recognise Israel would be resisted. PTI KP president Junaid Akbar accused the government of stealing the people’s mandate and promised accountability once Khan returned to power, while criticising judges for shielding political elites. Sheikh Waqas Akram said Khan was enduring imprisonment not for himself but for the future of Pakistan’s generations, adding that the current rulers were beholden to external powers. PTI leader Azam Swati also addressed the gathering, pledging to endure “oppression” until Imran Khan’s release and expressing hope that Khan would soon be free to lead the country towards peace, prosperity and development. As the gathering concluded, PTI leaders collectively declared that Imran Khan’s release was essential for Pakistan’s political stability and democratic future. They vowed to continue their struggle until, in their words, “the stolen mandate is restored, political prisoners are freed, and true freedom and justice are secured for the people of Pakistan.”
