ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday censured Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for brazenly attempting to “tarnish the reputation” of Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir.
Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said: “PTI’s disgusting smear campaign against Chief of the Army Staff General Asim Munir at the behest of Imran Niazi is deserving of the strongest condemnation.”
The campaign against the COAS was intolerable and the continuation of a conspiracy against the national institutions, a PM Office press release quoted PM Sharif as saying. He said Khan was violating the Constitution by dragging the institutions and their leadership into his “dirty” politics.
Throwing yet another brickbat at the PTI chairman, the Premier said: “This man Niazi [Imran Khan] is stooping to unprecedented lows in his desperation for power & going to the extent of damaging the country & undermining our armed forces & their leadership.”
The Prime Minister urged overseas Pakistanis to raise their voice against the “foreign-funded” campaign. “As a dirty political game is being played through the expatriates, they should not become part of the conspiracy,” he added. The Prime Minister also instructed Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah to strictly deal with those running such a smear campaign against the institutions.
He also warned of strict legal action against those fanning chaos and subversion in the country. “A campaign against an army chief appointed purely on merit for the first time in the country’s history could only be an agenda of the anti-Pakistan elements,” PM Sharif said, adding: “The whole nation stands by its institutions and is united against miscreants.”
Countering PM Sharif’s tweets, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry jumped in to reject the former’s claims by saying that such “calumnious” statements were meant to widen the divide between the people and the Army chief for gaining political mileage.
In a tweet, Chaudhry said: “Let me make it clear PTI has nothing to do with any slanderous campaign against Army Chief, rather we expect his good office to play role in normalising Pak politics by helping ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan) to hold peaceful and transparent elections.” –News Desk/APP
LONDON: The deaths of five people including a child while attempting to cross the English Channel underlines the need...
WARSAW/LONDON: Rishi Sunak has discussed air defence with Volodymyr Zelensky as the Ukrainian president welcomed a...
LONDON: A challenge over the UK’s role in allowing weapons to be sent to Israel for use in Gaza is set to be heard...
LONDON: London Mayor Sadiq Khan has talked about how he wants to help people living in poverty if he wins another term...
KARACHI: Iranian President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi arrived in Karachi on Tuesday amid tight security, on the third leg of...
LONDON: The Government’s expansion of funded childcare for working parents in England could affect the quality of...
EDINBURGH: The social care sector was under-prepared for the Covid-19 pandemic as it was “already in crisis”, an...
LONDON: Three teenagers have been sentenced for criminal damage after Rochdale Cenotaph was daubed with the words...