Islamabad: Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has directed the country’s commanders and other key officials, including those associated with the ISI, to stay away from politics and avoid talks with politicians. According to the report of The News International newspaper, these directions have been given after reports that Pakistan’s military establishment was involved in political engineering to damage the PTI to manipulate the upcoming by-elections in Punjab.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan also claimed that some of his candidates have complained about him receiving telephone calls from unknown numbers. The PTI chief also said that his party leaders and workers were being pressured to hold the bypolls. According to The News, the country’s defense sources condoled the allegations and revealed that the ISI Sector Commander, Lahore, who is being maligned by PTI leaders, has been in Lahore for more than a fortnight in relation to some of his professional Not there. work in islamabad
Earlier, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was given strict instructions to stay away from politics. ISI DG Lt Gen had instructed the intelligence agency officials that no interference in politics and political matters would be tolerated. Pakistani media reports said that the agency’s unauthorized political role has tarnished the reputation of the ISI.
However, the current ISI DG is said to have decided to keep the institution away from politics to avoid unnecessary controversies. Last month, the Pakistani military said it did not want to provide security for the upcoming polling exercise in the country unlike in 2018. General election.
However, the army assured its availability if needed during the election campaign, the Dawn newspaper reported. [of the electoral process]ECP secretary Umar Hamid Khan told reporters ahead of the upcoming by-election in Karachi’s NA-245.
Hamid Khan said military personnel would remain in the third phase of the security cordon and would be available for ‘quick response’, clarifying that troops would not be deployed at polling stations, although paramilitary Rangers forces “will remain close to polling stations”. Back in 2018, the ECP granted broad judicial powers to the armed forces at polling stations, a rare move that attracted severe criticism from human rights groups, Dawn reported.