LAHORE (Reuters) - Former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan has announced that he would begin a protest march with his supporters from the eastern city of Lahore to Pakistan’s capital Islamabad on Friday to call for early elections.
Smaller protests by Khan’s supporters took place last week after Pakistan’s top election tribunal found Khan guilty of unlawfully selling gifts from foreign dignitaries and heads of state, removing him of his parliamentary seat.
“I have decided to launch the long march from Friday at 11.00 am from Liberty Square in Lahore to Islamabad,” Khan said at press conference in Lahore. The distance between the two cities is about 380 kilometers.
“I am marching to press the government to announce elections immediately,” he said, adding his supporters and party members should avoid violence.
Since being removed from office by a no-confidence vote in the legislature in April, Khan has held protests across the country calling for snap elections, but the government has said they will be held as scheduled in October or November next year.