PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MNA Shandana Gulzar Khan on Wednesday said the party’s planned protest march to Islamabad would begin on Oct 4 and would be led by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi.

Speaking at a press conference at Peshawar Press Club, alongside KP assembly deputy speaker Surayya Bibi and lawyer Moazam Butt, Ms Gulzar said the party was not afraid of “batons, bullets or restrictions” and would proceed with the march.

The PTI had initially announced Sept 27 as the date for the march, but the date was subsequently changed, with Chief Minister Sohail Afridi announcing that it would now leave Peshawar on October 4.

Ms Gulzar alleged that talk of imposing emergency or governor’s rule in KP was aimed at preventing the PTI’s planned protest.

“First, statements about threats from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were issued and now undemocratic measures are being taken to stop the long march,” she alleged.

She said PTI workers, MPAs and MNAs in KP were being picked up ahead of the march and questioned the legality of such actions.

“Pukhtuns are ours, the army is ours and the police is ours. These institutions should not be pitted against the people,” she said, urging the authorities to avoid misuse of power.

Ms Gulzar said the PTI wanted to hold a peaceful protest and called upon the government to choose the path of dialogue instead of confrontation.

Referring to the economic difficulties faced by the people, she blamed the government for making essential commodities including petrol, electricity and flour increasingly unaffordable.

On remarks by PTI leader Shaukat Yousafzai about security threats, Ms Gulzar said he represented his personal assessment and that he should inform the party if he had any specific information about a threat.

Lawyer Moazam Butt, who also spoke at the press conference, alleged that the government was using the PTI’s planned protest as a pretext to impose emergency or governor’s rule in KP.

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2026