Plan against PTI govt started here, not in US: Imran

LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said former army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa had reached a deal for an extension in service with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif but Nawaz Sharif opposed it.

In an address through a video link, he made it clear that the conspiracy against his government was not from the United States, but from here.

“Conspiracy against us did not initiate from the USA, it was done from here,” he said while taking a U-turn on his previous stance in which he had been accusing the United States behind the dismissal of his government in April 2022.

“Husain Haqqani was hired to lobby against us,” said Imran. “I was declared anti-American through lobbying after which a cypher arrived from the USA and things moved forward,” he said.

While issuing a white paper, the PTI chief drew a comparison of the country under him a year ago and under Shehbaz now.

He said the PTI government combated multiple challenges, including the Covid issue. The present government could have multiplied the people’s woes had the Covid crisis taken place in their tenure.

During the PTI government, Imran said the economic challenges, which were inherited from the PMLN government, were addressed. “We dealt with the largest number of crises, unlike the present regime.”

“The Russian president sent his energy minister to Pakistan and it had been decided that we would purchase fuel from Russia at cheaper rates but, unfortunately, conspiracies began against our government.”

These rulers only came to power to protect themselves from corruption cases, he said.

He said in the PTI government’s tenure, Rs480 billion were recovered while the current government passed a law to protect against its corruption.

“They destroyed the institution of NAB and damaged the credibility of Parliament while making Raja Riaz the leader of Opposition in the National Assembly.”

He said Toshakhana’s entire record was available and this case against him was made by the Election Commission of Pakistan only to please the rulers. He said the Toshakhana case would bring Nawaz and Zardari to the book, not him.

Imran claimed the PTI government ensured freedom of the media. Since the day the present government took over, the media houses and even owners were threatened. The speeches of the head of the largest party faced a blackout, he added.

The worst torture on political workers, women and children was done on May 25 (2022), he said. Ali Amin Gandapur had been implicated in a treason case on frivolous charges, he said, adding that such things had made us a laughing stock in the entire world.

As many as 3,100 PTI workers were arrested, elderly Azam Swati was stripped and tortured which was a clear violation of right of dignity. Imran absolved the police of the treatment of Azam Swati, saying that they were not involved.

Even in Musharraf’s era, such brutality was not perpetrated, he said.

He said warrants were issued for Banigala in Islamabad and the DIG raided his Zaman Park residence in Lahore instead. The plan was to kill him while raiding Zaman Park or the Judicial Complex, Islamabad. If this plan did not work, the plan B was to poison him in custody, the former prime minister alleged.

He said initially a campaign of blasphemy was launched against him and an FIR was not registered despite the fact that he knew three culprits behind the assassination attempt on him at Wazirabad.

Issuing a white paper against the present government on the completion of one year of dismissal of PTI government, Imran Khan warned that the people would take to streets if polls were delayed. He said the one year performance of the present government was before everyone and stated polls were the only solution to the present problems confronted by Pakistan.

The former prime minister went to say that when the PTI government was sent home, the same judges were there which were present at the moment. He wondered as to how any country would invest in Pakistan if people had no trust in the system of justice.

Imran stated that an impression was being created that he wanted to create instability, which was totally wrong as he believed in the political process and change through polls.

The PTI chairman stated the rulers feared his popularity would increase further if he was arrested and they set a plan to eliminate him like Murtaza Bhutto was assassinated. He stated that 144 cases had been registered against him.