Pakistan interior minister says will request Imran Khan’s party to reconsider its planned protest on Feb 8

Islamabad: Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Saturday that the government will request jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party to reconsider its planned protest on February 8, but if the party refuses, the state will take necessary action.

Naqvi made these remarks during his visit to the Mega Passport Centre on Peco Road in Lahore, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.

In response to a question, the interior minister recalled that a similar request was made to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on November 26, and another request will be issued ahead of the February 8 protest. “If they still refuse, then the state will be compelled to intervene,” he added.

Meanwhile, ahead of his party’s planned protest on February 8, Khan has urged the Supreme Court to exercise its constitutional authority to safeguard the fundamental rights of the people of Pakistan.

In a letter addressed to Chief Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Aminuddin, Khan highlighted the alleged human rights violations, electoral fraud, and the arrests of his party workers.

The lengthy 349-page letter includes reports detailing allegations of rights violation, particularly around November 26, 2024 when his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had staged a violent protest in Islamabad and other parts of the country, reported The Express Tribune.

“When all organs and agencies of the state that are mandated by the law to exercise power to safeguard life, liberty and democracy stand subjugated by brute force and are acting in aid of persecution and fraud, it is the duty of the Supreme Court of Pakistan to intervene,” Khan, said in his letters.

The letter was shared on Khan’s official X handle late on Friday night.

Khan, 72, has been lodged at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since mid-2023 in multiple cases and his party has been at loggerheads with the federal government since the general elections in February 2024.

His party, PTI, has already declared that it would observe February 8, when elections were held last year, as a ‘Black Day’ to protest the alleged stolen mandate.