Opposition parties’ workers proceed to Islamabad for Azadi March

PESHAWAR: Several big processions under the banner of different opposition parties, mainly Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and Awami National Party (ANP) Thursday left for Islamabad to join the Azadi March.The main procession from Peshawar started from the Ring Road where the main office of JUI-F is located. It was led by the provincial leaders of the JUI-F.The ANP procession had left for the federal capital before that of the JUI-F.The ANP activists started the journey from Peshawar in the form of a cavalcade having hundreds of vehicles. It joined the main procession in Charsadda comprising of thousands of vehicles and led by the provincial chief of the party Aimal Wali Khan.The central president of the party, Asfandyar Wali Khan, heading another big vehicular procession joined the marchers at the Rashakai Interchange in Nowshera district.The JUI-F convoys, on the other hand, were a bit late. The processions from southern districts of the province under the leadership of the senior party leader, Akram Khan Durrani, reached Peshawar in the afternoon and left for the Rashakai Interchange to join the main procession.The JUI-F processions from across the province gathered at the Rashakai Interchange sited on the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway before leaving for Islamabad in one big procession. But some vehicles and small processions had already left without waiting for the main procession.The vehicles were decorated with large flags of different political parties taking part in the procession. Those taking part in the march were charged and were chanting vociferous slogans against the PTI government.The participants of the march believed they would be able to oust the government, which, according to them, was corrupt and incapable.Meanwhile, the announcement by certain Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders that the rally had been postponed created some confusion among the protesters. However, the leaders of all the parties rejected the claim about the postponement.Mian Iftikhar Hussain, central general secretary of the ANP, told The News that their workers had already reached the federal capital and they would hold their own protest gathering Thursday.Abdul Jalil Jan, the spokesman for the JUI-F, said it was not a rally but a march and decisions would be taken once processions reached Islamabad. The march has not been postponed, he clarified.He said a huge number of marchers had already entered the federal capital, while many more were on their way.“Due to the rush of the protestors, their arrival in Islamabad was slow. However, all the processions would reach Islamabad by late Thursday night,” he stated.The JUI-F leaders said the protestors would offer prayers at the main venue for the gathering and the protest would be launched formally after the Friday prayers today.

from The News International - Peshawar https://ift.tt/2NxQPWx