KARACHI: A new development emerged on Wednesday ahead of PTI’s planned Sept 27 long march to Islamabad, with the secretary general of the party declaring that the protest for the supremacy of the Constitution and for the release Imran Khan will not remain confined to the capital but will spread across Pakistan.
In a fresh media talk, Barrister Salman Akram Raja, during his visit to Karachi, further clarified that protests would be held in every city and district across the country, stressing that holding peaceful demonstrations is their constitutional and legal right.
“The people from every province and district would take to the streets as a nationwide, peaceful movement for their rights and the supremacy of the Constitution and law,” he said.
“Let me make it clear. Our call for September 27 is not confined to Islamabad. The September 27 protest will be Pakistan’s voice. The peaceful protest is our legal and constitutional right, and we will exercise this right across Pakistan.”
He said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi would lead the Sept 27 long march as announced, calling it “the planned mobilisation as a nationwide movement”. He added: “The nation will have to come out for the supremacy of the Constitution and law and for Imran Khan’s release.”
The PTI leader expressed serious concern over reports about the health of party founder Khan and demanded that he be shifted to a hospital immediately for a comprehensive medical examination and treatment.
“The entire nation is concerned about reports regarding Imran Khan’s health. The people demand that he should immediately be shifted to a hospital,” he said.
Earlier, Barrister Raja chaired a party meeting at the residence of PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh where the country’s political situation, Khan’s release and health, the Sept 27 protest and the wheat crisis across Punjab and Sindh were discussed.
He said the party had approached the courts over reports concerning Khan’s health and that a meeting with the Supreme Court registrar had been held the previous day, where the party was assured that the relevant cases would be fixed for hearing next week.
‘Disappearance of tonnes of wheat raises questions’
Commenting on the wheat crisis, the PTI secretary general accused the “Form 47 governments” of depriving people of their basic food needs. He questioned the government’s claims that sufficient wheat was available in the country, saying the reported shortage was alarming despite Punjab producing around 22 million tonnes of wheat.
“The disappearance of millions of tonnes of wheat from national stocks raises serious questions,” he said, referring to reports that 4.5 million tonnes had disappeared from Punjab and another 600,000 tonnes from Sindh.
He demanded that the government explain where the missing wheat had gone and “in which warehouses it had been stored”.
Barrister Raja alleged that hoarding was creating an artificial shortage of wheat in the market and said corruption in the system was forcing people to bear the consequences in the form of hunger, inflation and unemployment.
Speaking on the occasion, PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh alleged that corruption had become entrenched in Sindh, where the Pakistan Peoples Party had been in power for 18 years, while people continued to remain deprived of adequate healthcare, education and other basic facilities.
“The PPP has turned Karachi into a garbage dump,” he said.
He also questioned the reported disappearance of millions of tonnes of wheat despite government claims that sufficient stocks were available in Sindh and demanded answers over the shortage and alleged hoarding.
PTI Karachi President Raja Azhar, Central Leader Aftab Jahangir, Karachi General Secretary Arsalan Khalid, Sindh leader Jamal Siddiqui, MPAs Sajid Ali Khan and Wajid Ali Khan, Sindh Spokesperson Mohammad Ali Baloch and other party leaders attended the meeting.
Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2026
