“POPULAR SUPPORT”
Opposition politician Allama Raja Nasir Abbas said last-minute talks between the government and representatives from PTI were in “deadlock”.
Abbas told Geo TV, a popular private news channel, that negotiators had hit an impasse over demands that included access to Khan by his doctor.
Khan, a hugely popular former cricket star, has been behind bars since August 2023 and faces scores of charges ranging from corruption to treason and inciting violence, following widespread anti-establishment riots in May of that year.
He and his legal team reject the allegations, branding them as politically motivated cases aimed at neutralising his popularity.
Tim Willasey-Wilsey, a geopolitics expert, said the protests were “fundamentally driven by economic factors”, with the Iran war impacting fuel prices in Pakistan and food costs rising on the back of the war in Ukraine.
“Day-to-day life has become a real struggle for ordinary Pakistanis in recent years,” said Willasey-Wilsey, who is with the UK-based Royal United Services Institute.
“Imran Khan is the focal point for all opposition to the government,” he added.
James Dorsey, a fellow at the National University of Singapore, said Khan was “essentially a populist leader” with “a genuine popular movement that had broad popular support”.
“That’s why I think you’ve seen the determination by the government to prevent (the protesters) from entering Islamabad,” Dorsey said.
Afridi, the chief minister, said the demonstration was to begin in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday and make its way to Khairabad, 80km west of Islamabad, by Thursday.