Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan claimed on Wednesday that efforts were underway to drive a wedge between his political party and Pakistan Army as part of the US-backed regime change conspiracy.
Addressing a press conference following the arrest of PTI leader Shahbaz Gill for sedition and inciting the public against state institutions, Imran Khan said that the regime change conspiracy has not ended yet, adding that the “second phase of the conspiracy has just started.”
He said that even during his tenure, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) parties tried to create controversies between PTI and the country’s armed forces.
“Indian media and their local supporters openly criticised civil-military understanding,” he said.
The PTI chief said that 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 Hussain Haqqani to the US to save him from Pakistan Army, he said adding that he [Zardari] had proposed sending DG ISI to India after the Mumbai attacks.
The former premier 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 are patriotic and we [PTI] are anti-military,” he added.
Speaking about Gill’s arrest, Imran said that if what he [Gill] said was against the law, the state should have followed the protocol and provided him a chance to explain himself as per the law.
The former premier said that the PDM parties had said much more than what Shahbaz Gill is being punished for, but no action was taken against them.
He said that the PTI is Pakistan’s largest political party and has very strong street power.
“If we come to retaliate, we can shut down the country within an hour, but we don’t want to take extreme measures as it will only hurt the country’s economy, which is already in bad shape.”
He warned that the current political situation was going to get even worse, and the only option to come out of this crisis was to hold free and fair elections.
