Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) “fugitives” first looted Pakistan and are now living luxurious lives abroad while extracting money from Pakistanis. He said that if they have courage, they should return home and fight their political battles in Pakistan.
In a post on the social media platform X, Khawaja Asif said these fugitives are committing treason by lobbying in Europe against Pakistan’s GSP+ trade facility. He added that Pakistan’s battles should be fought within Pakistan.
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He recalled that both Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif faced moments of great trial in politics. They were imprisoned, and their relatives and family members were also jailed. He said both leaders endured the harshest repression under dictatorships, and their workers suffered extreme brutality, yet none of them ever thought of harming the country’s interests.
Khawaja Asif added that both political leaders fought their political struggles on Pakistan’s soil and paid the price for it, but they never considered damaging the nation or targeting the homeland.
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He said that after losing power, “Imran Khan and his company” first wrote to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in an attempt to push Pakistan toward default, and are now lobbying to damage Pakistan’s exports.
The defence minister said that if such actions were done by India, it would be understandable — but when people who call themselves Pakistanis do this, they deserve to be called traitors to the nation.