ISLAMABAD - Continuing with his recent change of tone towards the military establishment, incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan on Tuesday said that he was open to talks with the Army.
Talking to reporters during the hearing of the 190 million pounds case at the Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail, the former prime minister suggested the military appoint a representative for these talks.
The remarks of the jailed leader came days after he had requested the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir to remain neutral in the present political dispensation of the country. Since his ouster from power in April 2022, Khan has remained critical to the military establishment and its top leadership for their alleged involvement in politics till last week when he changed tack by toning down his rhetoric against the institution.
“We are ready to negotiate with the Army. Let the Army appoint its representative,” he said. Khan claimed that he has never levelled allegations against the military, but only criticized it when necessary. “When there is a spoiled child at home, it has to be criticized,” he added.
He went on to say that any one shouldn’t give them a lesson that the military never made mistakes. General Yahya Khan was behind the disintegration of Pakistan into two parts and General Ziaul Haq was responsible for the death sentence of former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
Setting his conditions for talks, the PTI chief said that he wanted release of all party leaders and workers and withdrawal of all cases against them, and to get back his party’s “stolen mandate.” At the same time, transparent elections are the only way to save the country, he added.
He questioned the current political environment, referring to the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi. “What is the SIFC? Who is Mohsin Naqvi? An undeclared martial law is enforced in the country,” he remarked.
He accused Naqvi of being an army representative. “Naqvi is their representative; he reached this position through them.”
He vehemently opposed any dialogue with Naqvi if he was appointed as representative of the army for talks, accusing him and the Punjab’s inspector general of police (IGP) of victimising the PTI supporters.
Khan said that the PTI had mandated Pashtun nationalist leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai for talks but no one was nominated from the other side.
“We have complete trust in Achakzai,” he said.
The former prime minister remarked that dialogue with the ruling PPP and PML-N was of no use, accusing that the ruling coalition wanted to pit the Army against the PTI to crush the latter. “Both PML-N and PPP are drowning in the sea and they are surviving with the help of shoes bearing a tag of the May 9 riots,” he added.
He also called Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz as fascist, saying she had retained the present IGP because he oppressed the PTI workers.
He also supported the sit-in of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) at Rawalpindi’s Liaquat Bagh against rising inflation and inflated electricity bills. He added that his party would fully participate in the protest.
Khan also supported those Baloch activists who are raising their voice for the recovery of missing persons.
The PTI chief requested Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice (CJ) Aamer Farooq to withdraw from his cases to ensure fairness. He underlined that CJ declared his arrest from the premises of IHC legal.
“I request Justice Aamer Farooq to withdraw from my cases according to the principles of justice,” he said, adding that CJ should refer his cases to other judges.
Khan said that the PTI had no involvement in the May 9 incidents, insisting that CCTV footage would exonerate the party. He added that any PTI member should be brought to book if he or she was involved in this violence.
Referring to remarks of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman that PTI was ready to resign from the assemblies, he said that Maulana was talking about the third stage.