Daily Times

PTI leader Babar Awan requested Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial to take suo motu notice of Alvi’s startling claims. In a video posted on PTI’s account on social media platform X, Awan said the president of the country was the head of state, a part of Parliament and the supreme commander of the armed forces while the country’s agreements were also made using his name. “So what the president has said is trustworthy and credible,” Awan said. “The Constitution did not give anyone working under the president, be it the secretary or the peon, the right to either stop the implementation of a law or interfere or sabotage it. “A very serious crime has taken place,” he said, adding that this amounted to “constitutional insubordination” which would fall under Article 6 (high treason). The PTI leader said that under Article 186 of the Constitution, the president could send the matter to the apex court. Referring to the president’s claims, Awan said it was the “biggest tweet in Pakistan’s 76-year-long history”. He said that the entire world had gotten the opportunity to see what goes on in the country. “That is why it is very important for the CJP to take notice. That is my request to him,” he said. The unprecedented claims made by the president opened the floodgates of claims and counter-claims, prompting a weekend presser by the caretaker ministers for law and information, as well as a barrage of recriminations from the former ruling party, PTI. In a tweet on X, President Alvi had pointed the finger at his staff, saying he was duped by the presidency staff who did not return the said “unsigned” bills despite repeated directives. “As God is my witness, I did not sign Official Secrets Amendment Bill, 2023 and Pakistan Army Amendment Bill, 2023 as I disagreed with these laws,” the president had said in his tweet.