Pakistani Americans Hold Rally at the California State Capitol for Imran Khan

By Ras H. Siddiqui

Over a hundred members from the regional Pakistani American community gathered at the California State Capitol building in Sacramento on September 27, 2026, calling for the release of Pakistani cricket hero, cancer hospital builder, university founder, and leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) political party Imran Khan. It is important to note that not all in attendance at this rally were PTI members or opponents of the Pakistani establishment.

Some present here just wanted to express their concern for the personal well-being of Khan Sahib himself. Imran Khan has been in a Pakistani jail (Prisoner No 804) for over three years now after a deluge of charges (a century was made) against him were filed. PTI means Pakistan’s Movement for Justice and many Pakistanis happen to believe that Khan’s incarceration is justice denied and is politically motivated. Pakistani politics is a risky business and being an elected prime minister there has its pitfalls as the popularity of a leader is often not enough to prevent his or her removal.

The protest started off with a car rally sporting American, Pakistani and PTI flags as people slowly gathered at the beautiful Capitol Rose Garden before marching down the street and across to the western steps of the facility. The proceedings began with a Qur’an recitation and many speakers addressed the rally in English, Urdu, Punjabi and Seraiki languages but one did hear some Pashto in the background too. It would be difficult to include all the speakers’ names and what they said in this short report, but we can report that they included some strong supporters of the PTI in the Bay Area, Stockton, and the Sacramento region. 

One speaker we can mention is the former Deputy Speaker (August 2018 to 16 April 2022) of the National Assembly of Pakistan Qasim Khan Suri who was the special guest and lead spokesperson at the Capitol event. He is a Pashtun from the Sur tribe residing in Quetta, Baluchistan province and he often airs his support of Imran Khan on social media. It was nice to see him here in person as he maintained a welcome balance in his views. He called Imran Khan a uniter of Pakistan and said that the PTI party has maintained a strong presence in all four provinces of the country, and in Gilgit-Baltistan. Suri lamented the fact that the PTI leader, his family members and supporters have been treated badly under the present leadership in Pakistan.

It would be remiss if we did not mention that the America-Pakistan relationship is remarkably close right now and the friendship between President Trump and Field Marshal Asim Munir has been getting a lot of press coverage (thanks to our president’s frequent remarks). There is currently also a “Do Not Disturb” sign on this relationship. which all Pakistani Americans (protesters included) should be cognizant of. The Middle East situation is extremely fluid, and Pakistan finds itself in a real pickle.

While it may be okay to vent against the (Sharif-Munir) hybrid regime one cannot argue that if a PTI government were in power today, it would somehow reveal a magic wand to fix everything. The ongoing storm generated by the Iran conflict this year needs rational thinking and not emotional outbursts. It is not easy to overlook that a reset is under way on policy, power politics and possibly even geography in that region. For that reason, supporting the continuation of this hybrid regime appears to be a prudent choice. And one hopes that Imran Khan is made aware of this fact too.

The PTI long march set for Septer 27 th in Pakistan was postponed but it was still held in Sacramento to show both concern and solidarity with it. The organizers deserve our thanks as supporters of Imran Khan remain numerous in the Pakistani Diaspora. We all call for his release on humanitarian grounds and ask him to play on the back foot for a while. And let us add our names to the humanitarian appeal for Imran Khan's release. He always made Pakistan look good before he entered the cesspool of Pakistani politics. Please do not treat our national hero in such a poor manner.

The politics of non-confrontation is the need of the hour in Pakistan. The storm in the region will eventually pass and one can only hope and pray that our poor country of origin will escape its wrath. And after the guns are silent and the dust has settled, who knows? In the meantime, Imran Khan can return to his house Bani Gala and study the history of the Solidarity Movement in Poland. And maybe even review Sun Tsu’s The Art of War.