Daily Times

PTI chief and former prime minister Imran Khan Wednesday warned that efforts were being made to drive a wedge between Pakistan’s biggest political party PTI and Pakistan Army and called it a part of the US-backed regime change conspiracy. Talking to the people via a live telecast from his Bani Gala residence in Islamabad, he said that the regime change conspiracy had not ended, but it was still underway.

He said that during his tenure, Indian media and their local supporters criticized civil-military understanding and labeled him as a prime minister implanted by the army. He said Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif spoke against the interests of Pakistan after the Mumbai attacks, and also mentioned Nawaz Sharif’s secret meetings with Indian businessmen. It was Zardari who conveyed a message through ex-ambassador Husain Haqqani to the US to save him from Pakistan Army, he said and added that he [Zardari] had proposed sending DG ISI to India after Mumbai attacks.

The ex-PM said that it could be read in the Dawn Leaks what Nawaz Sharif opined about the Pakistan Army. “Now, the impression is being created that they [opponents] are patriotic and we [PTI] are anti-military.” Imran Khan said that every effort was made to crush PTI but ‘we did not sit silently’. He termed the foreign funding case a tool to disintegrate PTI and said that the case had no value which would be established when any court would peruse the decision.

He said that his opponents want his technical “knock-out” in Toshakhana and foreign funding cases because they know they would lose in the elections against him. Imran Khan warned the nation that the next phase of regime change conspiracy would be strict as the local abettors have decided to show muscles to crush and intimidate people.

He said that the foreign powers do not want to see a stable Pakistan and mentioned speculations that Pakistan’s airspace was used for a drone attack in Afghanistan killing al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri. If we are doing it, he added, it would not benefit Pakistan which was evident from experiences. The ex-PM expressed grave concerns about the rise of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Swat and adjoining areas. He said that PTI leaders have started receiving threats from TTP militants, adding that to him; it seemed like another conspiracy to weaken PTI.

He deplored how PTI leader Shahbaz Gill was arrested and played clips of Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Asif Ali Zardari, and others speaking against the military’s leadership. He asked why no action was taken against these leaders who spoke against top military leadership and said that Shahbaz Gill should have been allowed to clarify himself before the court if he had said something wrong.

The ex-PM said that PTI has street power to block the entire country, but they would not resort to it but instead stage peaceful protests just because they care about the country. He reiterated that the only solution to the prevailing crisis in the country was free and fair elections. He added that Israel and India were “overjoyed” after his government was overthrown through the regime change conspiracy.

The PTI leader went on to say that his party exposed the disinformation campaigns against the country. “The EU DisinfoLab exposed how India had been plotting against Pakistan, and those in the current government were also part of the disinformation campaign against the country,” he alleged. He said that the government has prepared to crush the PTI. ‘Gill should be given a chance to clarify’ Talking about the party’s foreign funding case, Khan said that it was “baseless.” The PTI chief said that the party has provided the names of 40,000 donors, who are now being termed “foreigners” by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). “We have provided all the details to the commission,” said Khan. “People gave us funds and we have audit books to prove that, while other political parties have no evidence to show how they received funds.

“In fact, they don’t have an audit report, no donors, so where do their funds come from?” he questioned. “Despite a court order to investigate other parties’ cases, it was only the PTI that was put under a trial,” said the PTI leader. Speaking about the Toshakhana controversy, Khan added that all those who were appointed to higher ranks in the government received gifts. “Asif Zardari took three cars from the Toshakhana while Nawaz Sharif took one car,” he added while demanding that all of them should be investigated.

Khan said that the government was trying to malign his reputation through the Toshakhana reference. He also revealed that the party leaders were receiving threats from the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). He added that the ECP was completely on the coalition government’s side during the Punjab by-elections. “They were sure that they would win the elections, however, all their plans failed.” The former premier said that the only way to take the country out of the crisis was through free and fair elections.

The PTI chairman also raised concerns over rumours of a “deal between Pakistan and the West over using the country’s airspace”, warning that any such thing would only lead to further destruction and loss of life in the country. “If we have made such a deal, I want to say this again […] we helped in the past […] after that, we were used, we were sanctioned […] we received threats and the nation paid a huge price.”