PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa president Junaid Akbar has said he expects the state to use force during the Islamabad march, but warned that his party would not return quietly if protesters were killed. Addressing a gathering in Peshawar, Junaid Akbar said PTI workers would not approach Islamabad through a single route. He said they would travel through the motorway and GT Road, descend from the Margalla Hills and also arrive from Dera Ismail Khan. Referring to a previous protest, he said they had been shocked at the time and had not expected the state to open fire. He said that on the next occasion, they would be aware of the possibility of state action and would not simply take the bodies of protesters back and remain silent. “If bodies fall this time, we will turn Islamabad into Somnath,” he said. Meanwhile, Federal Information Minister Atta Tarar, reacting to Junaid Akbar’s remarks, said the statement showed that the objective was to create unrest and destruction. He said the government’s foremost priority was to protect the lives, property and livelihoods of citizens. Atta Tarar said the government would not allow roads to be blocked, normal life to be disrupted or routes to be obstructed, and described the announced protest as illegal and unconstitutional.
