by Press Trust of IndiaPakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan, in his first address after being freed by an Islamabad court, hit out at the country’s powerful military, saying it should be ashamed of jumping into politics and can form its own political party.
Addressing the nation from his Lahore home on Saturday, Khan took strong objection to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR)’s allegations and said that the spokesperson of the military wing of the army was not even born when he told Pakistan in the world. was represented.
He said, ‘I kept the flag of Pakistan high in the whole world. ISPR never made such a statement. you should be ashamed of yourself. You have jumped into politics. Why don’t you form a political party?’
His remarks came in response to ISPR Director General Major General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry’s statement in which he called Khan a “hypocrite”.
He said, “Listen to me Mr. DG ISPR…You were not even born when I was representing my country in the world and earning a good name for it. Shame on you.” in harsh response.
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Vijay Khan returned to his Zaman Park home in Lahore on Saturday after locking himself inside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) premises for hours fearing re-arrest despite being granted bail on Friday.
Before leaving for Lahore, the 70-year-old Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief hit out at the “imported government for kidnapping” despite the IHC granting him bail on all counts.
The 70-year-old Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief also took a jibe at Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir and blamed him for his “kidnapping” after he was released by the court.
In a major relief to Khan, the Islamabad High Court on Friday granted him protective bail for two weeks in a corruption case and asked authorities to arrest the former Pakistan prime minister in any case registered anywhere in the country till Monday. stopped from
During Khan’s address, video clips were shown of how army trucks dropped ‘unknown’ men in plainclothes who joined PTI protesters and incited them to resort to violence and vandalize public property.
Khan distanced himself from the violent protests that erupted in the wake of his arrest from the IHC complex on Tuesday by Pakistan Rangers, insisting that “violence and vandalism is not my philosophy”.
Khan’s arrest sparked unrest in Pakistan that continued until Friday and resulted in several deaths and the destruction of dozens of military and state installations by protesters.
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For the first time in Pakistan’s history, protesters stormed the Army Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and set ablaze a corps commander’s house in Lahore.
Police put the death toll in the violent clashes at 10, while Khan’s party claimed 40 of its workers were killed in firing by security personnel.
Khan said, “They have put the entire leadership of PTI in jails and arrested over 3,500 workers and more cases have been filed against me after the attack on state buildings by unknown persons.”
“Government parties don’t want elections because they know they will be completely wiped out. That’s why they planned this conspiracy (attack on military installations) and ran away from elections,” he said.
“Such actions have serious consequences. Though you (Army) will not listen to me, I advise you to think big. You should see where such actions are leading the country,” he said.
Khan demanded a probe into the protests and sabotage following his arrest by an independent panel set up by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial.
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“I know who wants to create chaos in the country and take advantage of the tense situation,” Dawn newspaper quoted him as saying.
Khan said that the judiciary is the only hope for Pakistan.
He said there has been unprecedented control of the media by the ‘handlers’ who have banned even social media to curb free speech.
He appealed to journalists to follow their conscience and not be intimidated by the military establishment.