Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan on Friday said he will remain “silent” as he does not want to damage the country’s reputation in response to the ISI chief’s scathing allegations accusing Khan of offering Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa with “lucrative offer” in return for his support during the political turmoil in March.
A day after ISI chief Lt Gen Nadeem Ahmed Anjum in an unprecedented news conference on Thursday said, Army chief Gen Bajwa was given a “lucrative offer” by the then government amidst the political turmoil in March, Khan rejected the accusation stating that the remark was one-sided and he only “talked about Iman Khan” and never uttered a word against the “thieves” in the government.
“DG ISI, listen carefully, the things I know, I am staying silent for my institutions and the country. I don’t want to damage my country,” the PTI chief said as the crowd cheered. “Our criticism is for constructive purposes and for your improvement. I can say more but will not say as it will hurt the institution,” he said.
Addressing his party supporters at Lahore’s Liberty Chowk after launching his protest march towards Islamabad demanding early elections, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief said his march is not for politics or personal interest but to gain real freedom and ensure that all decisions were made in Pakistan and not in London or Washington.
“My only aim is to free my nation and turn Pakistan into a free country,” Khan, standing atop a container, said.
Meanwhile, Gen. Bajwa is scheduled to retire next month after a 3-year extension.
The news conference by the ISI chief came as the country struggles to respond to the recent killing of investigative journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya and indirect allegations against the armed forces.
Sharif, a well-known critic of Pakistan’s military, was shot dead at a police checkpoint at an hour’s distance from Nairobi on Sunday night, creating a storm in the country. The Kenyan police later said it was a case of “mistaken identity” during a search for a similar car involved in a child abduction case.
Addressing his supporters, Khan said that, unlike Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif, he was “not a runaway that would either sit quietly here or criticise the military in London”.
“I am not going to leave this country. I will live and die in this country,” added the PTI chief. “If the handlers and facilitators of the thieves of this imported government think that they (government) should be accepted by us, then listen, this nation will give every sacrifice but will never accept these thieves,” he said.
Long March
Khan’s long march dubbed as ‘Haqeeqi Azadi March’ or a protest for actual freedom of the country to force the government to announce a date for early general elections, began on Friday from the Liberty Chowk area in Lahore as his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party held power shows at Ichhra, Mozang, Data Sahib and Azadi Chowk areas of Lahore.
Khan had promised that the march would be peaceful. “Our march will be according to the law, we will not break any rule. We will not enter the (high security) Red Zone and will only go to the areas which have been designated by the Supreme Court for protests,” he said.
However, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has directed television channels not to live telecast PTI leaders speeches and the long march, according to its notification of October 28.
Khan, 70, plans to arrive in Islamabad on November 4 and has sought formal permission from the government to allow his party to hold a protest rally.
It is not clear if he would go back after the rally or transform it into a sit-in on the pattern of his 2014 protest when a 126-day sit-in was staged by his followers in front of the parliament building.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan government has rejected the march. Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the nation had refused to be subservient to a “foreign-funded” instigator and had rejected the “bloody march”. Sanaullah said that Khan tried to “threaten” the government and institutions to “get a date for elections” but failed in this regard.
The minister said that after all of the PTI chief’s tactics failed, he has now resorted to holding a long march. He warned that “strict action will be taken if they attempt to break the law and create a law and order situation in the capital.” Sanaullah added that if PTI stood by its commitment to stay within the places permitted by the Supreme Court, no one would stop them from exercising its democratic right.
Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman has alleged that Khan considers himself to be “above the law and Constitution” as she accused the PTI chief of feeding people lies. Rehman said that Imran was a “fascist” who considered himself to be the “king”. “This is why he leads people towards violence,” she added.
However, PTI secretary general Asad Umar that the protest would be peaceful, adding the party decided to dedicate the march to slain journalist Sharif.
Former information minister Fawad Chaudhry said that the PTI’s long march only had one agenda — fresh elections. The PTI leader told Dawn News that the people of Pakistan wanted new elections to be held. “People have come out in hundreds and thousands. This is our struggle for real freedom,” he said.
The term of the National Assembly will end in August 2023 and fresh elections should be held within 60 days.
Khan, who was ousted from power in April after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, has maintained ‘threat letter’ from the US and claimed that it was part of a foreign conspiracy to remove him as he was not acceptable for following an independent foreign policy. The US has bluntly rejected the allegations.
(With PTI inputs)
Read all the Latest News here
Comments
0 comment