RAWALPINDI - Incarcerated former prime minister and PTI founding chairman Imran Khan has supported Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s proposal of direct talks with Afghanistan to address terrorism concerns.
“Ali Amin is absolutely right,” Imran Khan remarked, backing Gandapur’s stance during a talk with journalists at Adiala Jail on Friday.
“They should be beseeching him to go and talk to Afghanistan for the sake of God,” the former premier said adding, “Terrorism cannot be eliminated without dialogue.” Khan expressed support for his stalwart a day after a scathing attack by Defence Minister Kh Asif on Gandapur for suggesting bypassing the Centre and the ministries to hold talks with Kabul in a provincial capacity.
When questioned about the possibility of a province directly engaging with another country when a federal government and the Foreign Office were already in place, Imran Khan said: “Forget the Foreign Office, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been the most affected by terrorism.”
Turning his guns to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman, he remarked, “Bilawal [Bhutto], when he was the foreign minister, didn’t even visit Afghanistan.”
Expressing grave concern over the heavy toll that terrorism has taken on the province, Khan noted, “So many policemen in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have embraced martyrdom [fighting terror].”
Khan heaped emphasis on the significance of improving ties with Afghanistan to prevent the country from remaining embroiled in terrorism, claiming, “The least terrorism happened during PTI’s rule.”
Khan urged the government to lend a hand to anyone attempting to eradicate the menace of terrorism.
“If someone is trying to end terrorism, cooperate with them,” he stated, dismissing the perception that Gandapur’s intentions were anti-state. “Ali Amin is speaking in the favour of the country, not against it.”
He reiterated the heavy losses Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has suffered, highlighting that “one thousand police officers have already been martyred” in the province.
