Babar asks Imran to quit as party head

ISLAMABAD: An erstwhile close associate of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan, Akbar S Babar, Friday predicted revival of “original PTI” soon. He said contacts among founding members have increased dramatically, while shocked and confused workers are looking for a healing touch and correct direction.

Babar, who remains a member of PTI, while Imran had disowned him and arbitrarily thrown him out of the party, has served as party former information secretary and vice-president, said what currently is being witnessed was inevitable, thanks to disastrous policies and actions adopted by no one else than Imran himself.

Talking to The News and commending the trend of party leaders and senior members parting ways with PTI, he said it was quite natural when the boat faces doom, “they always are the first to jump out of it”.

About the May 9 tragic incidents, he said unfortunately PTI had become a tool of global conspiracy and its facilitators to weaken Pakistan and its key institutions, and bring the masses and the military face to face. But, PTI chairman miserably failed, as only his mindless leaders and workers could serve him.

“You have seen that common people remained indifferent to PTI’s mayhem on that unfortunate day. They did not join them. More than sufficient evidence is available to the common man even in the form of Imran’s instigating speeches, interviews and comments against the country’s security institutions and their heads”, he explained.

Only a spineless person, he contended, would believe in PTI chairman’s lame excuses and a desperate bid in the last two-three days to distance himself from what the party had done to the defence installations. Even monuments and portraits of martyrs were torched, he said. He also mentioned his endless series of so-called “address to the nation” and rallies for five-six months to impede elevation of one person to the top post.

“There are man-made laws and those divine ones. One may or may not implement 1973 Constitution in totality, but Allah Almighty’s fixing of the tyrant can never ever be doubted. What PTI and the party government had done to the country and its own political rivals is before us, and now it is pay-back time,” he said.

Babar pointed out he was victimised and elimination threats were hurled for filing and pursuing a genuine case of foreign funding of PTI.

“Important party people would share with me then PM’s vindictive designs against me. I was implicated in bogus cases and time proved these were politically-motivated,” he said.

He remarked today Imran was reaping exactly what he had sown over these years, adding unfortunately the country and the masses had to suffer also; be it economy, rule of law or social fiber, while the youth has been poisoned with his self-destructive narrative.

About PTI’s future, he sounded optimistic and demanded Imran should concede his failure and resign as party chairman to let the founding members hold deliberations and interactions with the party workers to chalk out future line of action.

“Please member my words, Imran’s success is Pakistan’s failure and his failure is Pakistan’s success. Already, time has proved this”, he said and asked the entire political leadership to sit across the table sometime in August to thrash out an agenda to rescue the country, ensuring political stability.

He cautioned if the nation straight away goes for elections, the same old cycle will continue and the country and its people could suffer more, especially on the economic and governance front. “Let’s make a fresh beginning with desperately-required radical reforms. People need relief in terms of depleting financial position and justice”, he said.

Babar said, “Let’s there be soul-searching and retrospection, and carrying out much-needed basic reforms to rid the country of mafias”. He advocated a plan of action to clear a plethora of pending cases from the apex court down to the lower judiciary.