PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s long march in Swabi failed to materialise on Monday, with not a single worker turning out despite the party leadership’s claims, while a heavy police crackdown netted 169 confirmed arrests across the district. On the same day, street protests erupted in Jamrud and Bara in Khyber tribal district against the emergency and governor’s rule, drawing a forceful police response.
The march that never happened
The long march in Swabi was dead on arrival. District leadership remained absent throughout the day, and no workers appeared at any announced gathering point. Business centres operated as usual, while police contingents, containers and other machinery stayed deployed across the district.
The Islamabad Motorway and GT Road stayed open with routine traffic movement, a far cry from the gridlock that PTI street actions have produced in the past.
The quiet followed an intense crackdown launched after the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. District police arrested more than 180 PTI workers, with sources putting the confirmed figure at 169 so far. The arrests were carried out in Shewa Ada, Yar Hussain Razzar, Swabi Khas, Topi, Lahore, Gadoon and other areas.
Those detained include District Senior Vice President Muhammad Ayaz Taj Abad, Raees Khan and Mustafa Khan. Police sources said the arrests were made over preparations for the long march and fears of disruption to law and order. Each police station has reportedly been assigned a target of hundreds of further arrests, and raids continue.
Khyber rises in protest as PTI’s Swabi march flops
While Swabi stayed still, Khyber moved. On the second day of emergency in the tribal district, protests broke out in Jamrud and Bara against the emergency and governor’s rule, and in support of former Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Sohail Afridi.
The district police officer for Khyber confirmed that 30 protesters were arrested. In Bara Bazaar, tension persisted throughout the day between police and demonstrators, particularly around Main Khyber Chowk, Qambar Abad Market and the Sur Minar area. Police used baton charges, tear gas and aerial firing to disperse the crowds, and the heavy use of tear gas created panic and badly disrupted commercial activity.
In Jamrud, PTI workers gathered at the historic Bab-e-Khyber in support of Afridi. Reports also emerged that police sealed Afridi’s hujra in Bara, though no official explanation was provided.
The emergency backdrop
The contrast reflects how the emergency has redrawn the province’s political map: with governor’s rule in place, the state’s capacity to pre-empt street mobilisation has grown, and the Swabi flop suggests PTI’s ability to assemble workers at short notice is weakening under preventive detention.
But the Khyber protests also show the limits of that approach: sealing a former chief minister’s hujra without explanation risks turning a crackdown into a rallying symbol. The pattern is not limited to Swabi: PTI’s protest call also fizzled in Peshawar days earlier, even as the twin cities began clearing roadblocks and withdrawing extra police. Feature Pakistan is tracking these developments, from the prime minister’s 11-member monitoring panel for K-P to the federal briefing on governor’s rule in Peshawar.
*Source: The Express Tribune*
Frequently asked questions
Why did PTI’s Swabi long march fail?
Not a single worker turned out on Monday, October 12, and district leadership stayed absent. A pre-emptive police crackdown under the K-P emergency had already detained 169 confirmed PTI workers across the district over long march preparations, effectively breaking the mobilisation before it began.
How many PTI workers were arrested in Swabi?
Police put the confirmed figure at 169, though initial reports said more than 180. Detained workers include District Senior Vice President Muhammad Ayaz Taj Abad, Raees Khan and Mustafa Khan. Raids are continuing, with each police station reportedly assigned targets of hundreds of further arrests.
What happened in Khyber on the second day of emergency?
Protests erupted in Jamrud and Bara against the emergency and governor’s rule and in support of former K-P chief minister Sohail Afridi. Police used baton charges, tear gas and aerial firing; 30 protesters were arrested, and Afridi’s hujra in Bara was reportedly sealed without official explanation.
Where did the Khyber clashes take place?
Tension persisted in Bara Bazaar, especially around Main Khyber Chowk, Qambar Abad Market and the Sur Minar area. In Jamrud, PTI workers gathered at the historic Bab-e-Khyber to protest the emergency measures.
