Pakistan's opposition issues four-point declaration, demands Khan’s release

Pakistan’s jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party has issued a four-point declaration, rejecting what it called the “theft” of the February 8, 2024, election, denouncing judicial subjugation, opposing military operations and enforced disappearances, and demanding the release of political prisoners, including Khan himself.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) staged a power show in Peshawar, where the party’s central and provincial leadership, including Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali, Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, addressed a large gathering of workers and supporters from across the country.

Raja presented a four-point resolution rejecting the February 8, 2024, elections, declaring them a theft of the people’s mandate and condemning what he described as measures imposed to conceal that outcome.

The resolution further dismissed the subjugation of the judiciary, which it said had been enabled through the 26th Constitutional Amendment.

The statement also opposed military operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and denounced enforced disappearances in Balochistan. It criticized what it termed the plundering of provinces’ water resources and vowed to safeguard the mineral wealth of each province, pledging that these resources would not be handed over to any external party.

In addition, the resolution demanded the release of Imran Khan along with several senior PTI figures, including Bushra Bibi, Yasmin Rashid, Ijaz Chaudhry, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, and Umar Sarfraz Cheema, calling their detention unjust.

Addressing the gathering, PTI Chairman expressed disappointment that the judiciary had failed to restore what he called PTI’s stolen mandate, alleging that the 26th Constitutional Amendment had effectively rendered the courts subservient.

Gohar stressed that the purpose of the rally was not merely to demonstrate political strength but to raise the party’s voice for justice, insisting that “90 percent of the people still stand with Khan.”

Ali Amin Gandapur appealed to the judiciary and state authorities to ensure justice for Khan, his wife Bushra Bibi, and all political detainees. He declared that no new military operation would be permitted in the province, stressing that KP had already suffered immense human losses during the fight against terrorism.

Gandapur urged the federal government and the Foreign Office to prioritize dialogue over conflict, insisting that political and security challenges must be addressed through negotiations rather than war.

Speaking to Nukta, Imran Khan’s sister Noreen Khan said supporters had gathered for the former prime minister, and it was now the turn of elected representatives to assemble outside Adiala Jail, where Khan is incarcerated, to press for his release.

“We want his release. For this, we should protest outside Adiala Jail until he is freed,” she suggested.

Jamshaid Dasti, former PTI lawmaker, told Nukta that the absence of judicial independence left the party with no choice but to protest. “We will continue our struggle for Khan’s release and the supremacy of law,” he said.

Shahid Khattak, PTI lawmaker, said the gathering was aimed at reviving the party’s movement for a major protest or march.

“We are now ready to go against the current government as we don’t accept it,” he added.