ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry has asserted that Prime Minister Imran Khan had not attended the military and intelligence leadership’s briefing on national security to accommodate the Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif.
“The prime minister was scheduled to attend the national security meeting, but Shahbaz Sharif had conveyed to the speaker that if the premier came to the briefing, he would not attend,” Fawad said during an interview to a private news channel.
Talking about the in-camera meeting, the information minister said the government hopes and prays that there is a peaceful transfer of power in Afghanistan. “We are pushing for negotiations in Afghanistan,” he added.
“There are three million Afghan nationals in Pakistan — if another three million are pushed in, it will put a lot of pressure on our economy,” he added, referring to the Afghan refugees.
Referring to the prospects for peace in the war-torn neighbor, Fawad said, “It won’t be so easy for the Taliban to take over the government,” adding, “We want that the Afghan Taliban and the Ghani government negotiate a way out.”
“We are only concerned when India uses Afghan territories against us,” he said, adding, “Meanwhile, we will continue to try and mediate between the Afghan Taliban and the Ghani government.”
PML-N responds
Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) criticised Fawad Chaudhry for suggesting that the party’s President Shehbaz Sharif was the cause of Prime Minister Imran Khan not attending the high-level security briefing.
Marriyum Aurangzeb questioned how could Shehbaz have refused to attend when the prime minister was not even a part of the meeting. Rubbishing Chaudhry’s claim, she said the PML-N president had not sent a message to anyone. “Fawad Chaudhry is lying. He is a propaganda machine,” she added.
عمران صاحب میٹنگ کا حصہ ہی نہیں تھے تو شہباز شریف نے کیسے منع کیا ؟
فواد چودھری جھوٹ بول رہے ہیں
فواد چودھری صاحب پرپوگینڈا مشین ہیں
شہباز شریف کیسے منع کرتے میٹنگ سپیکر نے بلائی تھی شہباز شریف نے کسی کوئی پیغام نہیں بھیجا pic.twitter.com/a8DJAzg2iW— Marriyum Aurangzeb (@Marriyum_A) July 2, 2021
She further questioned whether Chaudhry had any official document or evidence showing Shehbaz’s refusal. “Did Imran Khan sahab not attend issues of national importance and security at Shehbaz Sharif’s behest?” she added.
