Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan has claimed that he was offered a deal, which he refused because it did not guarantee his supporters’ release.
“I received a message proposing a deal: the government will provide ‘political space’ for my party but will place me under house arrest and transfer me to Bani Gala,” a statement quoting him on his Facebook account said on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, his sister Aleema Khan made similar claims. The former prime minister’s party’s negotiating committee met with the government’s team earlier this week.
Described as an “informal meeting”, they decided to meet again on January 2 where the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf would present the ‘charter of demand’.
In the statement, Khan demanded the release of all “political prisoners” before he would consider any deal. He added that he would not accept house arrest or be sent to any jail in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, asserting, “I will remain in jail if necessary, but I will not accept any deal.”
But the social media post did not mention who, where, and how he received the message. In an interview with News Insight with Amir Zia on December 12, PTI leader Raoof Hasan confirmed that his party in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was in contact with the security agencies and intelligence because of the provincial situation and long border with Afghanistan.
“We have daily basis interaction with them on multiple issues,” he said and added that the party’s decision to postpone the protest before November was taken after contact with them.
He claimed that if the rule of law were enforced, investment would flow into the country, and the economy would stabilise. The former premier lamented the lack of attention to the issue, alleging that investors were pulling out their capital and factories were shutting down.
