Khawaja Asif says unprecedented relief given to Imran questionable

SIALKOT: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told a press conference at his Sialkot residence on Saturday that unprecedented relief given to PTI Chairman Imran Khan had raised questions about the impartiality of courts.

Addressing a press conference, Asif said the judiciary should act according to the Constitution and law, instead of personal liking and disliking. He said the facilitation provided to Imran Khan by the courts of law was highly questionable. The minister said when a judge would tell an accused that he was happy to see him, what justice could be expected from him? He wondered where such judges were when verdicts were being given against Nawaz Sharif and his family members.

Kh Asif alleged that the establishment and judiciary had facilitated the ouster of Nawaz Sharif from the government and attempted to eliminate him from politics. However, he added, Nawaz could not be eliminated from politics, but all characters, who were involved in the conspiracy, had been exposed now. Kh Asif thanked God that Nawaz Sharif’s younger brother, Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, is still the prime minister of Pakistan.

The defence minister expressed deep sorrow over the heavy damage inflicted on the public property by the PTI activists. He said had the army and police reacted during the attack, the state would not have suffered. But, in such a situation, ulterior motives of Imran Khan would have been fulfilled, he added.

The federal minister said that parliament was the supreme institution and it would protect its jurisdiction, its rights and its authority in all circumstances. Whatever decision it would take, the executive was bound to implement it according to the Constitution, he added.

In response to a question, he said the purpose of the ruling alliance Pakistan Democratic Movement’s sit-in on Monday was to urge the judiciary to play its actual role, instead of acting as a facilitator of an individual.

Kh Asif also condemned the action taken by the district administration at the PTI leaders’ houses in Sialkot. He said the PMLN did not believe in politics of revenge.