- Khan tells supporters in Islamabad there will be no violence on days of proposed lockdown of cities
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) on Monday rescheduled the dates for its planned countrywide ‘shutdown’ after lawmakers from the party met on Monday to discuss their ‘Plan C’.
The dates for the ‘shutdown’ in Lahore and the countrywide shutdown are now December 15 and December 18, respectively.
Unveiling his much-talked-about ‘Plan-C’ at a rally on Sunday, PTI Chairman Imran Khan threatened a countrywide shutdown on December 16 if his longstanding demand for an independent audit of the May 2013 elections was not accepted.
“I will go to Lahore and shut it down on December 4. On December 8, I will shut down Faisalabad, on December 12, I will shut down Karachi, and on December 16, I will bring the entire country to a standstill if an enquiry is not initiated into the electoral fraud,” he had told supporters on Sunday.
A PTI Punjab official said that the date for Lahore had been revised in light of other activities and protests that are scheduled to take place in the city.
Jamaatud-Dawa (JuD) was scheduled to hold its rally on December 4 and 5 in Lahore. According to PTI sources, the dates were rescheduled to avoid holding the rally on the same day as JuD.
PTI Vice Chairperson Shah Mehmood Qureshi confirmed that the date for countrywide shutdown has been changed from December 16 to December 18. He said that the decision was made after consulting with the party’s leadership.
KHAN SAYS NO VIOLENCE:
Meanwhile, addressing supporters at D-Chowk on Monday, Imran Khan said that he had no plan to shut down any city or the country by acts of arson.
Khan pledged that there would be no violence from his supporters during the nationwide protests. He added that his strategy to lockdown the cities would be revealed soon.
Lashing out at the prime minister and the co-chairman of the PPP, Khan said that Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari were the most corrupt politicians of Pakistan.
Commenting on Zardari’s remarks in which he had called Imran Khan a wolf, he said that the PPP co-chairman should be scared of this wolf.