After leaving Islamabad on Tuesday night, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur on Wednesday addressed a press conference in Mansehra after the event was delayed multiple times.
“This sit in a movement. The sit-in still continues,” Gandapur announced to the cheers from the party workers who had gathered at the PTI secretariat in Mansehra since morning.
Gandapur said the sit-in would continue until Imran Khan called it off.
It was not immediately clear what Gandapur meant by claiming that the sit-in still continued because security forces removed PTI protesters from Islamabad on Tuesday night.
But he began by saying that the PTI was subjected to fascism for two and half years and it was denied the right to hold protest.
Gandapur said PTI protesters were never going to move beyond D-Chowk, but they were shot upon. He said PTI workers had only responded to security forces after they were subjected to violence.
He said the party would ensure release of workers who were arrested in Islamabad during the protest and the life in the city had returned to normalcy by Wednesday.
Why were bullets fire on our peaceful protesters? he questioned.
Gandapur claimed that he and Bushra Bibi were fired upon and there were attempts to kidnap Bushra Bibi.
There was a direct attack on me, direct assassination attempt and a direct attempt to kidnap, Gandapur said adding “you will answer that.”
He said this amounted to provocation and if PTI adopted the same tactics “you” would forget Bangladesh.
Gandapur announced Rs10 million for each worker killed in Islamabad.
Speaking at the press conference, PTI’s Omar Ayub said an attempt on the life of the chief minister of a province and Bushra Bibi was made in the federal capital.
Omar said two of his vehicles and four people were kidnap on the Hazara motorway and had disappeared since then.
The press confernece was originally planned for 11:00 AM on Wednesday, but it was postponed three times, and began after 2:30pm.
The delay was due to a meeting being held by Ali Amin Gandapur with senior officials at the Circuit House in Mansehra, including the Commissioner and the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, sources confirmed.
Reports suggest that Gandapur may depart from Mansehra for Peshawar by helicopter once the meeting concludes.
Meanwhile, significant police presence has been deployed around the PTI’s Mansehra secretariat, where PTI workers have gathered in large numbers since early morning, eagerly awaiting statements from their leadership on recent events in Islamabad.
The press conference, originally planned for the media, was transformed into a workers’ convention, with PTI supporters hoping to hear from their leaders, saya Kashan Awan of Aaj News.
Party workers continue to raise slogans as Gandapur spoke.
Journalists have also been present since morning in anticipation of the press briefing, but the ongoing delays have left many questioning the direction of the event.
PTI’s internal discussions have gained attention, particularly regarding the party’s protest strategy.
Barrister Saif confirmed that the government had offered PTI the opportunity to hold a public gathering in Sangjani, a proposal that Imran Khan approved. However, Bushra Bibi insisted on holding a rally at D-Chowk in Islamabad.
The plans for D Chowk went awry when the government launched a massive crackdown and Bushra Bibi, Gandapur and other leaders had to leave the protesters and flee to KP.
In a conversation with Aaj News earlier on Wednesday, PTI leader Shaukat Yousafzai raised concerns about the party’s approach and questioned why more focus hadn’t been placed on negotiations with the government.
