Lagatar24 Desk
Islamabad, May 26: Former Prime Minister Imran Khan has threatened to return to Islamabad if election dates are not announced within six days after a massive show of strength that held Pakistani cities under siege until Thursday morning as Imran Khan’s Azadi march reached the capital Islamabad in the early hours of Thursday.
On the eve of Imran Khan’s Azadi march, conflicts between party members and police officers erupted in Punjab, Karachi, and Lahore. Mohammad Hafeez, a former Pakistan cricketer, took to Twitter to protest that petrol stations in Lahore were out of fuel and ATMs were out of cash.
The army was sent in to protect the city’s Red Zone, which includes major facilities such as the Supreme Court and the Prime Minister’s residence, from what Imran Khan hoped would be a peaceful demonstration. On Thursday, Islamabad was turned into a battleground, with police shelling tear gas to prevent the march from entering.
Imran Khan arrived in Islamabad and addressed the march, saying that the government would be pleased if he staged a sit-in, since this would result in more fights between his party’s members and the police.
“I had decided that I will sit here until the government dissolves assemblies and announces elections, but of what I have seen in the past 24 hours, they (govt) are taking the nation towards anarchy,” he said.
