Govt 'petrified' of losing polls; has turned blind in 'revenge politics': Imran
Pakistan
Imran said that under the London Plan, rulers want to arrest or disqualify me before the elections.
LAHORE (Dunya News) – Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday said that the federal government was 'petrified' of losing elections and has turned blind in 'revenge politics', Dunya News reported.
He stated this during his meeting with PTI president and former Punjab chief minister Parvez Elahi who called on him at his Zaman Park residence in Lahore. Both the leaders discussed current political situation in the country as well as legal and judicial matters faced by the PTI chief.
During the meeting, the two leaders condemned the operation conducted by the police to arrest Imran Khan at his residence in Zaman Park which continued for two days.
Speaking on the occasion, Imran Khan said that the imported government is afraid of election and has turned blind in politics of revenge. He also paid tribute to PTI workers and said that I am proud of my workers for resisting every tactic of oppression.
Imran Khan said that under the 'London Plan', the rulers want to arrest or disqualify me before the elections as they are scared of popularity of PTI. He urged the masses to wage a holy war against corrupt mafia in the elections.
On the other hand, Chaudhry Parvez Elehi said that any obstacle regarding Supreme Court order for holding elections would not be tolerated and added that government tactics to delay or postpone elections would fail.
Parvez Elahi said that the police operation at Imran Khan's residence in Lahore is being carried out on the behest of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief organizer Maryam Nawaz. He alleged that worst violations of human rights are being committed during the operation.
Former Punjab chief minister also criticized the provincial caretaker government and said that the caretaker government of Punjab is a puppet of the federal government.
Willing to talk to anyone for country's sake, reiterates Imran Khan
Earlier in the day, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan reiterated on Thursday that he will hold talks with anybody else for the sake of the country.
Taking to Twitter, Mr Khan went on to say that he had no issue for taking any initiative in terms of the prosperity and interests of the country.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) March 16, 2023
Expressing his gratitude for his supporters, Mr Khan said, "I want to express my gratitude to all of the workers who came from different parts of the country, including Lahore, to stand by my side in a bid to struggle for actual freedom."
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) March 16, 2023
On the other hand, Mr Khan, while saying that he believed in supremacy of law, vowed to appear before the court on March 18.
Speaking to a delegation of journalists, Mr Khan said his party would not let the elections get delayed for more than 90 days, otherwise, the PTI will launch a movement as per the constitution in this regard.
Talking about his potential arrest, Mr Khan said, "The police, Rangers have come again near my residence to arrest me. There is no doubt about it that after getting arrested, I will be subjected to torture."
When asked about the presence of former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, Mr Khan said, "Chaudhry Parvez Elahi has been tested positive for coronavirus".
Can provide in writing I never broke the law, claims Imran
Earlier, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Thursday said he never broke the law during his lifetime and he could provide that in writing.
His statement comes in the wake of an intermittent episodes of stalemate between the police, later flanked by Rangers, and PTI activists amid fears of his arrest in connection with the Toshakhana case.
Addressing the party workers outside his residence at Zaman Park, he said the law enforcement agencies attacked him and his party workers as if they were terrorists. “I ask them to furnish a single instance where I broke the law”, he added. They came to arrest, he said, the leader of the biggest political party in Pakistan. The policemen did all this just for the sake of securing their jobs, he continued.
He said he was on protective bail until March 18 but the police arrived on March 14 instead. “The LHC also asked the police what they were doing there before March 18”, he added. What they were intended to do was, he said, what they did to PTI leaders Azam Swati, and Shehbaz Gill. He urged to look at the postmortem report to know what treatment they meted out to PTI worker Ali Bilal alias Zill-e-Shah.
He went on to say that they were not here to implement the arrest plan but just to carry forward Nawaz Sharif’s wish of putting him behind bars. “They fear that I might come into power after winning the elections”, he added. What their plan was, he said, put Imran in jail for different cases and win elections in his absence.
He said Punjab IG Police first registered a murder case against him for killing the PTI worker and later claimed that Mr Shah died in an accident. "Already 85 cases have been registered against me", he added. They deployed policemen, he said, who tortured his party workers on May 25.
He maintained that it became difficult for him to breathe even inside rooms when police fired teargas shells. “I salute those who fought outside my home”, he added. He challenged PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif to come back and see how people welcomed him.
Talking about the ticket distribution for upcoming elections, he said he knew what had happened in 2018 during PTI ticket distribution adding that money and political influence were used. “Therefore, I’ll ensure merit this time as I have no friends and relatives at the party”, he added. He asked the people who would not be awarded tickets to refrain from standing against the party or the country.
He said usually parties appoint their bureaucracy, and think of their vested interests when they came to power. “India surpassed Pakistan in the 90s but what’s more worrisome is the fact that Bangladesh is going ahead”, he lamented. The incumbent government, he said, had brought the country to this point.
He claimed that whatever they could do to assassinate my character, they did, from getting the books written against him to attacking his wife Bushra Bibi. “They know when they will go out for the campaign, people will not budge”, he added.
