Pakistan grants provisional provincial status to Gilgit-Baltistan

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday announced the provisional-provincial status for Gilgit-Baltistan as he addressed the region on the 73rd Independence Day celebrations.

"One of the reasons for me coming to Gilgit-Baltistan is to announce that we have decided to grant Gilgit-Baltistan the provisional provincial status," he said. "We have taken this decision keeping in mind the UN Security Council's resolutions," added the prime minister.

PM Imran said that he could not announce or talk about the development packages for Gilgit-Baltistan since it would be a violation of the stated procedures as elections were about to take place in the area.

"However, I will tell you that it is our government's foremost policy to uplift Pakistan's poor that amount to 25% of the population and the country's backward areas," he said.

The prime minister said that one of the many reasons Gilgit-Baltistan remained backwards was because it was "cut off" from the rest of Pakistan.

"Insha'Allah you will see in the coming days, our development plans will go there [backward areas]," he said.

Pakistan secure because of our armed forces, says PM Imran Khan

Turning his guns towards India, PM Imran said that the most racist and Hindu supremacist government in history was in power in India. He said that citizenship and registration laws were enacted to target Muslims in the country.

PM Imran said that he could not stress enough the importance of a strong army for a nation's security. "Pakistan is secure today because of its armed forces," he said. "Our army is the main reason why we haven't suffered the same fate as many other Muslim countries."

He blamed India for promoting sectarian hate in Pakistan, saying that New Delhi was behind fanning hate between the Shia and Sunni sects in Pakistan. The prime minister felicitated Pakistan's intelligence agencies for rendering ineffective India's conspiracies to spread anarchy in the country.

So-called democrats are discrediting army, judiciary: PM Imran Khan

The premier lashed out at the Opposition, saying that so-called democrats in the country were targeting the military and the judiciary.

"Those who call themselves democrats have started a programme according to which they are discrediting the country's judiciary and military," he said.

He blamed the Opposition for trying to establish the narrative that General Elections 2018 in Pakistan were rigged. After that, the prime minister said, they tried to blackmail him on the economy and the coronavirus situation.

PM Imran accused the Opposition of attempting to blackmail him so he can forgive them for their alleged corruption. "Their interest is against Pakistan's interest and this is happening. All of them have become one," he said.

The prime minister said that since the Opposition cannot blackmail him, they have turned their guns towards the ISI chief.

"I thank Allah that they are speaking out against the army chief and the ISI chief. This means I was right in selecting them [to their posts]," he said. "Because if these robbers are speaking out against them then that means these two are correct people."

He said that if one were to study the history of the Muslims of the sub-continent, he/she would realise that Muslims always used to fight with determination. "However, the most damage that was inflicted on the Muslims was through people of their own, their Mir Jafars and Mir Sadiqs," he said, referring to the Opposition.

"These people are now speaking the language of Narendra Modi. All heads of states congratulated me on the way we handled the Pulwama situation," he said, adding that it was disappointing what Ayaz Sadiq was saying about Abhinandan.

"I want to make it clear right now — Imran Khan will never forgive these dacoits," he said.