Khan washes hands of corrupt system, to quit legislative assemblies

• 

The chairman of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) and former Prime minister, Imran Khan, has declared that the Long March of his party will not head to Islamabad because he does not want to sow discord and anarchy in the nation.

“They [government] cannot afford Islamabad march... they cannot stop millions from entering Islamabad. We could have created Sri Lanka-like situation,” he said while addressing the party’s gathering in Rawalpindi on Saturday.

To force the country's current leaders to call for early elections, he added, the party has decided to resign from every legislative body in the nation. “If riots take place then things will get out of everyone’s hands. I tried my best not to take any step which could create chaos in the country,” he added.

“Today I am deciding against marching on Islamabad because we don’t want to spread anarchy in the country,” he announced. “We will not remain part of this corrupt system. We have decided to quit all legislative assemblies.”

Read next: Pakistan interior minister asks Imran Khan to postpone protests

Imran said he spoke with the chief ministers about resigning from all legislative positions and that the PTI parliamentary party meeting will be where the final decision on this matter will be announced. “Instead of causing harm to our country it is better to leave this corrupt system,” he added.

After his injury in a gun attack earlier this month, the former premier traveled to Islamabad for the "climax" of the anticipated march before making his way to Rawalpindi to speak at his first public event. “When I was leaving for Rawalpindi from Lahore, everyone advised me against traveling due to wounds in my leg,” the former PM said at the start of his address.

Imran also said his assistants urged him not to speak at the Rawalpindi public protest because "three culprits holding top portfolios will attempt to kill me again."

Read next: Pakistan assigns once ousted Asim Munir as chief of army

Khan attends first rally since shooting

Khan told tens of thousands of his supporters that he would fight to the "last drop of blood" in his first public address on Saturday since he was shot in an assassination attempt earlier this month.

Saturday's rally is the culmination of the so-called "long march" of Khan's party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), to pressure the government to call snap elections before Parliament's term expires in October next year.

"I have seen death from up close," said Khan, who wobbled to the stage with a walking stick to speak to supporters from a plush seat behind a panel of bulletproof glass. "I'm more worried about the freedom..."

The gathering took place in a vast open field between the capital, Islamabad, and neighboring Rawalpindi, the city that houses the headquarters of the country's powerful army.

The shooting was the most recent development in several months of political unrest that started in April when Khan was removed from office following a vote of no confidence in parliament.

The PTI party of Imran Khan has been pressing the government to call an early election before the current legislative session ends in October of next year, culminating in a rally on Saturday. "My life is in danger, and despite being injured I am going to Rawalpindi for the nation," PTI quoted Khan as saying in a morning tweet.

"My nation will come to Rawalpindi for me."

On November 4, Khan accused Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and Major-General Faisal Nasir, an intelligence officer, of intending to assassinate him and blame it on "a religious fanatic."

"The political situation in Pakistan has entered into a dangerous phase," said academic and political analyst Tauseef Ahmed Khan, who is also a board member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. "In a country with a history of political chaos, the sounds echo."