Rawalpindi - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI’s) senior leader Asad Qaiser said Thursday that imprisoned party founder Imran Khan had given the nod for forming a “grand opposition alliance” by expanding the existing platform — Tehreek Tahafuz-e-Ayin-e-Pakistan (TTAP). “PTI decides to expand the opposition alliance in meeting with Imran Khan,” said former National Assembly speaker while addressing the media alongside the party’s Secretary-General Omar Ayub Khan and others oustide Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail yesterday.
He announced that the former ruling party would gather all opposition parties to run a powerful anti-government movement. The PTI is all set to hold a power show in Swabi next week. Qaiser said the party’s forthcoming power show in Swabi was aimed at raising a “strong voice” for the release of PTI founder and other detained leaders.
“This country will only be governed in accordance with the law and the Constitution,” he emphasised.
During his address, Qaiser also censured the incumbent government over skyrocketing power bills, saying the bloated electricity bills were “unacceptable” for the inflation-hit masses.
The PTI leader also said that they support Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) sit-in — underway on Rawalpindi’s Murree Road since July 26 — against the massive hike in power bills.
Ayub, while addressing the same press conference, appealed to the masses to attend the public gathering in Swabi on August 5 in large numbers from across the country to show solidarity with the ex-premier and the “most popular party”.
In his initial remarks, the politico said that during the meeting, the former prime minister strongly condemned the killing of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh and expressed outrage over the West for doing nothing to stop Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians.
Imran also urged the international community to take effective steps to ensure peace in Palestine and stop Israeli brutalities in Gaza, said Omar.
Responding to criticism against the PTI founder for demanding negotiations, the politico said that they did not hold any discussion regarding the dialogue, however, he added that Imran made it clear that the military belongs to the nation and vice versa.
He further said that the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) were trying to drive a wedge between the military and the nation.
Regarding cases against the jailed ex-prime minister, the opposition leader said that they were fighting a legal battle for Imran’s release. He blamed the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for stopping the release of former first lady Bushra Bibi despite having no connections with the Toshakhana case.
The PTI secretary general demanded Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa and Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Aamer Farooq to recuse themselves from hearing the PTI founder’s cases.
The 71-year-old PTI founding chairman has been in prison for almost a year after he was booked in a plethora of cases, including the Toshakhana, cipher, and the un-Islamic marriage. His wife, Bushra, has also been behind bars for months.
However, a court suspended his sentence in the Toshakhana case, while other courts overturned his convictions in the cipher and iddat cases, respectively.
While there were hopes for Imran and Bushra’s release in July, they were dashed when NAB arrested them on fresh charges related to the sale of state gifts.
The chances of Imran’s release from jail further dimmed after he was arrested in new cases linked to the May 9, 2023, riots, following his acquittal in the iddat case.
Referring to the unending cycle of Imran’s release and detention, Ayub also stressed that the “justice system should serve justice to the PTI founder”.
He further alleged that ex-premier Nawaz Sharif ended his exile after “getting an NRO” and returned to the country after Justice Isa became the CJP. The politico claimed that the PML-N president did not dare to return when Umar Ata Bandial was holding the position of chief justice.
To a question regarding exorbitant electricity bills, the former power minister directly blamed the former governments of the PML-N and the PPP for approving expensive power plants and signing contracts with the independent power producers (IPPs) which resulted in bloated power bills.
Reacting to the press conference, PML-N leader Talal Chaudhry hit back at the opposition party saying no matter how many alliances PTI formed, they would face the law for the alleged wrongdoings.
Throwing shade at the PTI leadership, Chaudhry said: “Alliances would not save them from punishments.”
He added that the former ruling party should do politics on public issues but they indulged in maligning state institutions despite “writing a letter promising not to run [smear] campaigns against the institutions”.