Hyderabad, September 6, 2026: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was travelling towards Karachi on Sunday after addressing a PTI rally in Hyderabad and vowing to proceed with the party’s planned mobilisation campaign despite alleged hurdles placed in the way of his convoy.
Afridi, accompanied by PTI provincial President Junaid Akbar and other party leaders, has been on a five-day campaign in Sindh to mobilise support for the party’s September 27 nationwide protest demanding the release of PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan and immediate medical treatment for him at Islamabad’s Shifa International Hospital.
The PTI said shortly after 5:30pm that the convoy led by Afridi had entered Hyderabad district.
Addressing a public gathering in Hyderabad, the KP chief minister criticised the PML-N and PPP, saying Pakistan’s politics had been dominated by two families, one from Sindh and the other from Punjab.
“There are only two families ruling Pakistan — one from Sindh and the other from Punjab — but it was only PTI whose leader Imran Khan chose me, an ordinary worker, to be the KP CM,” he said.
He added that another PTI worker would soon become chief minister.
Afridi urged young people to stand up for the country and themselves, saying September 27 would be a historic date that could change Pakistan’s destiny.
He also criticised Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz over her recent remarks about security threats from neighbouring provinces and demanded an apology.
Maryam had said on Saturday that Punjab faced a greater security threat from neighbouring provinces than from India.
Afridi also questioned the military’s position on alleged Indian support for militant groups in Pakistan, asking Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry to clarify which position was correct.
The KP chief minister accused the Sharif family of tax evasion and maintaining properties abroad, alleging that they had neither been sincere in the past nor were they sincere today.
Addressing the gathering, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said the party had faced numerous cases and alleged that the doors of the courts had been closed to it. He described September 27 as a day of “true freedom” for the people.
Karachi’s District East police said no public gatherings, rallies or processions would be permitted around Mazar-i-Quaid, where PTI had planned to hold its rally.
The police warned that legal action would be taken if any gathering was held without permission.
Security arrangements around Mazar-i-Quaid were also strengthened in view of what police described as the current threat situation, with additional personnel deployed and surveillance tightened at entry and exit points.
Karachi Traffic Police also announced the closure of several roads around the area.
Both sides of Shahrah-i-Quaideen were closed to traffic for security reasons, with traffic from Noorani Chowrangi diverted towards Khalid Bin Waleed Road and traffic approaching Allah Wali Chowrangi diverted towards Tariq Road.
New MA Jinnah Road and the road near Corridor-III parking plaza towards PP Chowrangi and Jail Chowrangi were also closed from both sides, while alternative routes were provided for motorists.
Earlier, while travelling towards Hyderabad, Afridi addressed PTI workers in Tando Allahyar and alleged that obstacles were being placed in the way of his convoy.
Thanking PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari for welcoming him to Sindh on social media, Afridi asked whether the reported roadblocks were being created by the Sindh government or someone else.
“Containers are being placed and craters are being dug,” he claimed, asking how guests could be treated in such a manner.
In a video posted on X, Afridi said hurdles might have been created along the route but vowed that the PTI convoy would overcome them and reach Hyderabad before proceeding to Karachi.
He thanked the people of Umerkot for their support and called on residents of Hyderabad to prepare for the PTI caravan.
“After Hyderabad, we will be in Karachi by the evening,” he said.
The PTI later condemned what it described as the blocking of its caravan travelling from Hyderabad to Karachi and alleged that party workers in several cities across Sindh had been detained.
The party said there was a contradiction between Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s social media welcome for Afridi and what it described as the Sindh government’s use of police to block roads and arrest PTI workers.
The PTI termed the alleged actions a manifestation of “political hypocrisy and fear” and questioned why the PPP would oppose what it described as a peaceful political rally if it genuinely supported democracy and political freedom.
The party maintained that police deployments, barriers and alleged arrests would not prevent its workers and supporters from exercising their political rights.
It demanded that Bilawal direct the Sindh government to ensure political freedom in practice and called for the immediate release of workers allegedly detained in Hyderabad, Karachi and other parts of Sindh.
PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh, who was accompanying the KP chief minister, also shared a video showing a truck that he claimed had been placed to block the convoy’s route in Tando Allahyar.
Sheikh later posted videos showing what he described as residents of Hyderabad welcoming the PTI convoy.
The developments followed a cordial exchange between Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Afridi on Saturday night.
After Afridi reached Larkana, Bilawal welcomed him to what he called the “city of martyrs” and wished him well for the remainder of his Sindh tour.
He said Pakistan ultimately needed to return to a politics of tolerance, respect and coexistence, describing these as foundations of democracy.
Afridi thanked Bilawal and said the “beauty of democracy” lay in political and expressive freedom, an independent judiciary, acceptance of the public mandate, an independent parliament and a free press.
He also expressed hope that large crowds would respond to the PTI’s call in Karachi and Hyderabad.
The latest confrontation is not the first time Afridi’s political mobilisation campaign in Sindh has led to friction with the provincial government. During a previous visit, he initially praised the PPP-led Sindh government’s reception but later criticised its treatment of PTI leaders and supporters.
The PTI had also alleged that Afridi faced obstacles while travelling to Karachi ahead of a party rally in January and accused authorities of using force against its workers and supporters.
