A charred truck, empty tear gas shells and posters of Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan are all that remain of mass protests led by Khan’s wife Bushri Bibi that shut down the entire capital.
Just a day earlier, doctor Bibi – wrapped in a white shawl, her face covered by a white veil – stood atop a shipping container on the edge of town as thousands of her husband’s loyal supporters waved flags and chanted slogans below her.
“My children and my brothers! You have to stand with me,” she exclaimed Tuesday afternoon, her voice cutting through the deafening roar of the crowd.
“But even if you don’t,” she continued, “I’ll still stand firm.
“It’s not just about my husband. It’s about this country and its leader.”
It was her political debut, according to some observers of Pakistani politics.
But when the sun rose on Wednesday morning, there was no sign of Bushri Bibi or the thousands of protesters who marched across the country to the center of the capital to demand the release of their imprisoned leader.
What exactly happened to the so-called “final march” and Bushra Bibi when the city went dark is still unclear.
All eyewitnesses like Samia* can say with certainty is that the lights suddenly went out, plunging D Chowk, the square where they had gathered, into darkness.
