Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has modified the route of its ongoing long march, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi announcing that the procession will head to Khyber district on Tuesday night before continuing to Peshawar. This change was announced as the PTI convoy, led by Afridi, departed Kohat on the third day of the march.
Initially, the plan was for the caravan to travel directly from Kohat to Peshawar and spend the night near Mattani. However, Afridi addressed participants at University Chowk in Kohat, explaining that the route was altered after residents of Khyber district expressed their eagerness to host the marchers. “After Khyber district, we will go to Peshawar,” Afridi stated.
Khyber district, located immediately west of Peshawar, is a short drive from the provincial capital. The revised route will bring the caravan into Khyber before entering Peshawar. Afridi expressed gratitude to the people of Kohat for their warm welcome and reaffirmed that he and his supporters would not relent in their demands.
The chief minister emphasized that PTI had exhausted all constitutional, legal, and democratic channels before resorting to street protests. He maintained that the party’s demands, including access to jailed PTI founder Imran Khan and his medical treatment, were legitimate and lawful. Afridi also noted that PTI had publicly shared a draft of its demands on social media, challenging the government to point out any unconstitutional or illegal provisions.
“We are unarmed and will record our protest peacefully,” he urged, calling on supporters to maintain peace throughout the march. Afridi criticized the federal government’s counterterrorism policy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, arguing that successive military operations and drone strikes had failed to eradicate militancy in the province. He claimed that his proposed policy could restore peace within 100 days.
Additionally, Afridi accused the federal government of neglecting court orders related to Imran Khan and alleged that the former prime minister’s health was deteriorating in prison due to inadequate medical care.
The PTI initiated the long march from Lakki Marwat on October 4 after government-opposition talks collapsed, failing to resolve disputes over the party’s demands and the counterterrorism strategy. The convoy traveled through Karak before reaching Kohat on Monday.
The original route planned for the march to proceed from Kohat to Peshawar on October 6, then from Badaber to Charsadda on October 7, with participants from Khyber district joining at Badaber. The revised itinerary places Khyber district ahead of Peshawar.
PTI has announced that the broader first phase of the march will converge at Khairabad on October 8, where the next steps will be determined. The party confirmed on Monday that it will continue its long march toward Islamabad after government-opposition negotiations ended in deadlock early Sunday, with no agreement reached on key issues.
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