Leaders insist Imran’s release remains PTI’s ‘ultimate objective’

FLANKED by local PTI leaders, Salman Akram Raja addresses a press conference in Lahore.—PPI • Salman Akram Raja says critics are ‘hard of hearing’, claims party has emerged as largest social force in the country• Junaid Akbar Khan terms Balochistan ‘guarantor of country’s stability’, assails govt over law and order situation LAHORE / QUETTA: Deflecting criticism that the party has lost its way in the face of government intransigence, leaders of the main opposition PTI maintained that securing Imran Khan’s freedom remained their “ultimate objective”. In separate interactions with the media on Thursday, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja and the party’s KP Chapter President Junaid Akbar Khan pilloried the government and attempted to brush aside the impression that the party had become side-tracked from the founder’s mission. Speaking to reporters at the Lahore Press Club, Raja insisted that it was “a false claim that the PTI has been suppressed” or silenced, saying that critics “have a hearing problem”. On the contrary, he claimed, the party had emerged as “the largest social force” in the country, and would “continue challenging the system of tyranny and oppression”. Raja warned that a boiling point had been reached, adding that “rulers will fall short of bullets” when people take to the streets. Flanked by other PTI leaders, including the party’s Lahore president Mian Akram Usman, Mr Raja said the party had braved political repression, brutal treatment meted out to leaders and workers and the harassment of their families. He insisted that the party leadership has not surrendered and remained in ‘protest mode’. “We will also launch a Jail Bharo Tehreek (court-arrest movement), if needed,” he added. Commenting on the solitary confinement of the party founder and his spouse, Bushra Bibi, he warned that the rulers should “rein in their excesses” as their actions were in violation of all laws at home and abroad. ‘Guarantor of stability’ Meanwhile, speaking to reporters after meeting PTI office-bearers and senior members of the Tehreek-i-Tahaffuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) alliance, Junaid Akbar Khan reiterated that the party’s ultimate objective remained the struggle for the release of Imran Khan, the restoration of democracy, and achieving “real freedom”. He called Balochistan a guarantor of Pakistan’s stability, calling it one of the country’s most important and beautiful regions. Junaid Akbar, who is also chairman of the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee, said the province had been blessed with abundant natural resources, strategic geography, borders, Gwadar Port, and immense opportunities, but claimed that poor governance had deprived the people of basic necessities such as food, clothing, housing, and clean drinking water. Describing the situation in Balochistan as highly alarming, he expressed concern over ongoing developments in the province. The solution to all these issues, he said, lay in the rule of law, constitutional supremacy, and democracy, adding that power in Balochistan should rest with those who enjoyed the confidence of the people. Speaking about his meeting with Akhtar Mengal, he said the BNP-M leader remained an ally, adding that the PTI would continue to work alongside him. Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2026