Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has postponed its long march on Islamabad from 27 September to 4 October, with the caravan due to set off from Peshawar. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, the party’s most senior elected official, announced the new date. He said the delay was meant to wear down the federal government and law enforcement, which he said had already shut the capital and several routes. The march demands the release of party founder Imran Khan, who is held at Adiala jail in Rawalpindi, along with restored judicial independence and media freedom.
Authorities have responded with heavy security measures. Section 144 has been imposed in Islamabad for two months and in Punjab for 13 days. Paramilitary Rangers have been cleared for deployment across Islamabad and Punjab districts from 20 September to 5 October. Containers and barriers have been placed along the boundary between the two provinces.
Mobile and internet services were flagged for downgrading in parts of Rawalpindi and Attock. Afridi, 37, took over in October 2025 after Khan personally ordered his predecessor to step down, and he is the first chief minister from the tribal districts. He has warned that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa could be cut off from the rest of the country if the crackdown continues. The standoff is a major test of how far the PTI can mobilise the streets against a state that has kept its leader jailed.