Pakistan: Opposition crowds demand resignation of government and Imran Khan defies

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Crowds of demonstrators gathered in the Pakistani capital Islamabad on Friday to call for the resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan, whose government is struggling to improve economic conditions.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in the capital after Friday prayers as part of the so-called "March for Freedom".

In the face of the creeping opponents, the Prime Minister said in statements on Friday in the northern city of Gilgit that the demonstrations do not scare him.

Imran Khan said the protesters poured into the capital to demand accountability, stressing his determination to fight corruption.

The march of the opposition Islamic parties last Sunday began in Karachi, capital of the southern province of Sindh, led by the leader of the Association of Islamic Scholars Maulana Fazlur Rahman, and the Assembly in a coalition of seven parties with 16 seats out of 342 seats in the House of Representatives. Insaf, led by Imran Khan, has 155 seats.

Overnight, Fazlur Rahman and his supporters entered the capital aboard hundreds of buses and cars and gathered in a government-designated area.

The Association of Islamic Scholars accuses the prime minister, who took office in the summer of 2018, of carrying out foreign agendas that are not in Pakistan's interest, and says the elections that brought him to power are rigged, calling for new free elections.

Security alert
The government deployed 17,000 security forces and paramilitary forces, closed containers and roadblocks leading to the administrative and diplomatic area of ​​the heart of the city, while schools remained closed for the second day.

Government officials met with the organizers of the demonstrations and tried to dissuade them from entering the capital, but they did not succeed.

Demonstrators from several areas flocked, as they entered the capital, chanting slogans demanding change.

Army advice
The leader of the Association of Islamic Scholars, one of the largest Islamic parties in the country - in remarks made in the city of Lahore - that this protest will not stop unless the desired results after the arrival in Islamabad, in reference to the resignation of the Prime Minister.

"The current parliament has not been elected on a sound basis. We want to dissolve it," he said.

According to Agence France-Presse, has contacted the Chief of Staff of the army, which has great influence to the Prime Minister to advise him to avoid violence against the demonstrators.

The opposition says Imran Khan is backed by the military, but denies it, and the military denies any connection to politics.

The march of freedom, led by the Association of Muslim Scholars, is the first large-scale protest movement against Imran Khan's government since it took over a year ago.

When he won the July 2018 elections, Imran Khan vowed to end corruption, help middle-class families and put the economy back on track.

However, the economy continued to falter and the fiscal deficit increased to about 7% of GDP, inflation increased to 11%, and the local currency (rupee) has fallen more than 50% against the dollar since the end of 2017.