ISLAMABAD - Bushra Bibi, the wife of former prime minister Imran Khan, has emerged as a major motivational force for the PTI protestors, who came to the forefront and led the charge, overshadowing everyone.
For the supporters and followers of jailed ex-premier Khan, it was the day of Bibi who made it to the high security Red Zone of the capital despite all odds and hurdles. The PTI convoy led by the former first lady and Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Gandapur had left Peshawar for Islamabad over the weekend with the plan to hold a sit-in at the D-Chowk of Islamabad. PTI chief Imran Khan had given a call of the protest demanding release of all political prisoners, revocation of the 18th Amendment and return of stolen mandate.
By Monday night, most of the PTI leadership had agreed to the proposal of the Shehbaz Sharif administration that the venue of the protest should be changed from D-Chowk to Sangjani area, an outskirt of Islamabad. But it was Bibi who remained stuck to the party’s original protest plan and emphasized that they should reach the D-Chowk, the venue for the PTI’s power show. In October, Ali Amin Gandapur managed to bring the PTI protest march close to D-Chowk but only with the help of powers-that-be and then mysteriously disappeared, forcing the protestors to disperse in the absence of any leadership. This time Bibi gave hope to the followers of Khan that she would not leave them alone.
Earlier before her departure from Peshawar, differences had emerged between Bibi and CM Gandapur over her participation in the protest march. Gandapur wanted from her to avoid accompanying them, but she prevailed by saying if the PTI expected families to join the protest, then Khan’s family should be the part of the march by example. Bibi was considered apolitical till her release from jail in the last week of October, nearly nine months after her incarceration. Soon after her husband gave the protest call, the former first lady became active in politics and got herself busy in finalizing the protest strategy. She held meetings with the lawmakers and ticket-holders of the party, urging them to bring more people along with them to make the power show successful.