ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief declared an end to his party’s sit-in on Constitution Avenue on Tuesday, conceding implicitly that he had not succeeded in his objective – forcing Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to resign.

“We came to Islamabad to change the regime, but before that could happen, a change came about in the nation’s way of thinking,” Dr Tahirul Qadri told a sea of disappointed followers.

“You may now gather your luggage and return to your homes with the spirit of success in your hearts,” the PAT chief said in his last address from atop his container at D-Chowk.

Emotional scenes were witnessed at the PAT camp late on Tuesday night after Dr Qadri made the announcement to pack up. Men and women alike huddled together and many hugged their friends and wept at the prospect of leaving the place that had been home to them for the past 70 days.

Announces schedule for public meetings across the country

In an emotional outburst, he asked the audience: “Do you believe I would make a deal?”

“Now, I am entering the second phase of my revolution; I will be taking this movement on the road and spread it to other parts of the country as well,” the PAT chief said and explained that he would hold a brief demonstration in all major cities.

He announced plans to hold public meetings in Abbottabad (Oct 23), Bhakkar (Nov 23), Sargodha (Dec 5), Sialkot (Dec 14) and Karachi (Dec 25).

He also lashed out at the government, saying that there had been no headway in talks with the ruling party. “No change has come about in PML-N’s way of thinking over the past two months,” the PAT chief remarked.

After his speech, just before midnight, Dr Qadri made his way out of the container that had been his home for most of the past two months and left the sit-in.

The party’s President, Raheeq Abbasi, told Dawn that this was a “mini-revolution” and that the party was only changing the face of the sit-in by taking it on the road.

He said that the PTI – which has been camped alongside PAT on Constitution Avenue – was aware of their plans to end the sit-in. “But they have their own strategy and we have ours. They want to keep the sit-in going for as long as they can because they feel they can build pressure that way. We feel that we cannot achieve anything further by camping outside parliament,” Mr Abbasi said.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has advised all PML-N parliamentarians to show grace and not pass any negative comments about the PAT following their decision to end their sit-in.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2014