WASHINGTON: Hund­re­­ds of people protested outside the Pakistan Embassy on Tuesday, chanting slogans against Imran Khan’s ouster and demanding his return, and all of them were not PTI workers.

Many in the crowd — and the speakers — were among those who had been guests at the embassy’s Pakistan Day function on March 23. For them, it was the first event in which they were on the other side of the fence.

“Only Imran, no one else,” said one of the placards displayed at the protest. “No to looters,” read another. “Thie­ves and looters will run away. The honest will return,” proclaimed an Urdu placard.

A PTI worker had one of Imran’s quotes printed on his shirt: “Don’t lose heart. Be strong.” Two teenage girls carried placards, declaring: “Beggars cannot be leaders. Never mess with my country.”

Two other teenage girls, Unzela Khwaja and Zainab Nadeem, came from Elkridge, Maryland, on their own. “I came because my mom got really upset when she heard the news of Imran’s ouster,” said Unzela. “I want to share her grief.”

Zainab said she was “upset with the system in Pakistan” and wanted to “show her anger.”

Homemakers Farzana Khalid and Shaista Ali Khan came from Kingstown and Woodbridge, Virginia with the family. “Enough interference,” Farzana said. “We are not slaves of the Sharif family. Nawaz, Shehbaz, Mar­y­­am, Hamza, Junaid, is it a musical chair?”

“Yes, we want to be free of this stranglehold,” said Shaista. “We cannot remain their obedient servants forever.”

All of these women clai­m­­ed they were not PTI workers and had never participated in activities like this before.

Dr Aftab Hussain, a senior PTI worker, described this as “a defining moment.” He said he believed Imran’s claim that a US official had sent threats to Pakistan. “This is interference in a country’s internal matters.”

The slogans chanted at the rally were more targeted than speeches and comments. The most popular slogans, however, focused on Maulana Fazlur Rehman who, many among the protesters believed, was the instigator of the campaign that brought Imran down.

“Diesel, diesel,” was tur­ned into a chant as the participants kept the beat with their feet.

“We had a man who could restore honesty and free the society of corruption. They forced him out. Shame, shame,” said Johnny Bashir, a local PTI leader.

Khalid Ahmed, a PTI member from Virginia, urged people to “stay united and continue the campaign till Imran Khan returns.”

Rana Saadat, another PTI leader, called for early elections and urged the participants to spread this message among their friends and relatives in Pakistan. “Let’s bring PTI back in power with a two-thirds majority,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2022