Pakistan: Imran Khan addresses first rally since gun attack; says his Tehreek-e-Insaf will quit all provincial assemblies

Khan announced that his party members will resign from all the provincial assemblies.

He also called the prevailing political system in Pakistan “corrupt” and said his party wouldn’t be a part of it.

He alleged that three criminals, who attempted to kill him in the eastern city of Wazirabad on November 3, are waiting to target him again.

On Saturday, he announced that he was calling off his protest march to Islamabad because he feared it would cause havoc in the country.

Imran Khan appeared at the rally with a plaster on his right leg.

The 70-year-old leader has repeatedly alleged that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and ISI Counter Intelligence Wing head Maj-Gen Faisal Naseer were behind the attack on him.

PTI has already resigned from Pakistan's parliament but remains in power in two provinces and two administrative units.

Addressing a huge gathering of his supporters, Khan said, "If you want to live life, shun the fear of death."

He admitted that he couldn’t bring the powerful and corrupt under the law during his three-and-a-half-year-long prime ministership as key institutions like National Accountability Bureau were not under his control.

Khan also announced to continue his protests until new election dates are announced.

Elections are not due in Pakistan until the term of the current National Assembly gets over in August 2023.

"The rally was held because we want elections to take the country forward. I am here to tell them that there is no other way except elections,” Khan said.

Taking to his Twitter handle, Imran Khan wrote, "I want to thank all the people who came in such huge numbers from across Pakistan to our Rawalpindi Azadi March yesterday. Our Tehreek will continue until we establish rule of law and real freedom." (sic)

Imran Khan was forced to step down as prime minister of Pakistan in April after losing a no-confidence vote against his leadership, which he alleged was part of a conspiracy engineered by the US targeting him for his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China, and Afghanistan.