Tag: Imran Khan

  • Is Imran Khan coming back to National Assembly to take PM Shehbaz out?

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has hinted at the possibility that his party may return to the National Assembly (NA) to table a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif.

    The PTI fears that its dissenting member Raja Riaz who is holding the parliamentary party leader’s position in the NA may decide to vote in favour of PM Shehbaz if President Dr Arif Alvi asks Shehbaz Sharif to take the trust vote.

    Talking to the media at his Lahore residence, Khan said planning and consultations with party leaders and legal experts are going on to strategise how PTI’s turncoats can be stopped from siding with the ruling coalition of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

    “He [Shehbaz Sharif] will have sleepless nights in the days to come”, Khan reportedly said to journalists.

    He claimed that some Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNAs want to join the PTI.

    “Some PML-N members of the National Assembly are in contact with the PTI and they have expressed their interest in joining our camp. We will test them before giving them party membership,” Imran said, adding that he saw elections taking place in March or April.

    The former ruling party is considering “testing” PM Sharif’s strength in the house sensing that cracks are appearing in PDM’s ranks.

    PTI’s senior leader Fawad Chaud­hry has said that the party’s return to the National Assembly was linked with its plan to oust PM Sharif, reports Dawn.

    He said PTI was seeking legal opinion on how it could bind its MNAs to vote in line with the party policy in case of a no-trust move, and if that can be achieved without joining the assembly.

  • ‘Us ne hmein test kiya, ab us ki bari’: Khan says vote of confidence will be tabled against PM Shehbaz

    ‘Us ne hmein test kiya, ab us ki bari’: Khan says vote of confidence will be tabled against PM Shehbaz

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, in an exclusive interview on Saturday, said that Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif will be tested through a no-confidence motion.

    Speaking on Hum News’ programme Hum Meher Bokhari Kay Sath, Khan said, “Uss ne humein test keeya, abb uski baari” (He tested us, now it is his turn).

    He said the party would hash out the details of the move in a meeting on Sunday (today) and carry out planning for not only the trust vote but also “other plans to fully thrust them in a testing situation now”.

    When asked about the late-night voting on a confidence vote in Punjab Assembly, Khan said not many people knew this would happen at night, his party kept it secret. According to him, the party completed the numbers first without any bribes and horsetrading and then took the vote of confidence.

    The PTI chief also praised the way Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) stood behind the PTI and supported it. “The way Elahi is standing with us, there was immense appreciation in the party. He was the chief minister and made a real sacrifice. We are recommending he merges the party with ours.”

    About the KP assembly, he said that it will be dissolved within a week.

    During the interview, Khan mentioned that he spent his three and a half years in power in difficulty because his government was a coalition. He said that’s why his party has insisted on a merger between PTI and PML-Q.

    The former prime minister said that PM Shehbaz’s conference in Geneva was equivalent to making fun of Pakistan. He warned that there will be consequences to it in the future.

    Opening up about the extension given to former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa, he termed it his “mistake”. He revealed that at the time Bajwa himself sent a message that if he doesn’t get an extension, it will be difficult for him [Bajwa].

    He said that after securing the extension Bajwa changed as he begun asking Khan to give NROs to the Opposition.

  • Khan wants PML-Q to merge with PTI

    Khan wants PML-Q to merge with PTI

    In a meeting with journalists yesterday, PTI Chairman Imran Khan said that the PML-Q should merge with the PTI but discussions have yet to take place on this.

    Looking relaxed and quite confident after pulling off Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi’s vote of confidence in the Punjab Assembly and the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly, Khan praised Moonis Elahi and said he stood by the PTI despite pressure by powerful quarters. “Moonis is a forward-looking young man and he could see PTI’s political future and was able to convince the older leadership of his party.”

    Khan also praised Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi for having withstood threats and other pressure. He said that even his own members had a lot of offers, especially women MPAs, but they refused and stood by their party when it came to the vote of confidence.

    Khan said that fighting with the establishment is madness. On reconciliation with the army, Khan said that it is possible and he is willing to forgive the establishment and move on, whether it is the case of Azam Khan Swati or Shahbaz Gill or other things that took place since the vote of no-confidence against him because he genuinely believes that the military is the most organised institution and has the resources to stop smuggling of dollars, help in the crackdown against corruption and other things.

    Khan recalled the army’s assistance and work during the Covid pandemic, in polio vaccination campaigns and in controlling locusts. He also said that the military establishment only needs direction by the leaders. Their role can be very positive when they move in the right direction. To a question by this reporter on whether the military would get more space to meddle in politics if more role is given to it, he said that it cannot end overnight but leaders have to make sure that a direction is set on how to use the military to establish rule of law. Per him, only the military can take the country out of the current quagmire if it works with all political stakeholders.

    Khan said that the military can establish rule of law and no institution should be above the law. He said that he was not willing to sit with the PDM because they are looters who want an NRO, which basically means they want to be above the law. He said they have no stakes in the country as their assets are stashed abroad, which is why they can also be pressurised by outside powers.

    Talking about Balochistan and former FATA, Khan said he believed in political solutions and not military solutions.

    On being asked (by this reporter) about the crackdown against the media during the PTI’s tenure, Khan said he had nothing to do with it. “I have always taken the legal route when I have had problems with the media. I have a lot of tolerance for media criticism.”

    The PTI chairman was very confident that after the dissolution of the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies, the PDM would be left with no choice but to go for general elections. Khan believes that the current establishment will not support the government given the economic crisis. “If this government continues till August, Pakistan will be worse off than even Sri Lanka.”

    Khan said that whatever economic growth was achieved during the PTI tenure had all been undone by the PDM in less than a year.

  • CM KP has prepared summary for dissolution of assembly: Fawad Chaudhry

    CM KP has prepared summary for dissolution of assembly: Fawad Chaudhry

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senior Vice-President Fawad Chaudhry said on Friday that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has prepared a summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly..

    Talking to the media, Fawad revealed that Khan and his cabinet were scheduled to visit the PTI Chairman Imran Khan in Lahore but were unable to do so due to bad weather

    “We spoke to them on the phone,” he said. “They have prepared the advice to dissolve the KP assembly”.

    About the dissolution matter of the Punjab Assembly, the PTI leader asked the Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman not to wait for “48 hours” and urged him to dissolve the assembly immediately so that the process for the formation of an interim set up in Punjab be initiated.

    Earlier, it was reported that CM KP is expected to meet Khan today (Friday) in Lahore.

    The chief minister along with his cabinet was set to arrive in Lahore at the directions of his party chief.

    According to ARY News, Imran Khan would announce that the assembly will be dissolved by tonight.

    However, Special Assistant to CM Mahmood Khan on Information Barrister, Muhammad Ali Saif, said that the dissolution of the KP Assembly will take place after the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly.

    He said that a summary will be sent to KP Governor Haji Ghulam Ali to dissolve the assembly. According to him, there is no problem in KP, but they would wait for the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly first.

    He added that after the dissolution of the KP Assembly, a letter will also be written to the Leader of the Opposition— Akram Khan Durrani— for the appointment of a caretaker chief minister.

    On the other hand, KP Governor Ali has said that he still stood by his stance that assemblies should not be broken.

    On Thursday, Punjab CM Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi signed the summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly.

    In a brief one-line advice addressed to Governor Rehman, Elahi said: “I Pervaiz Elahi, chief minister of Punjab, hereby advise you to dissolve the provincial assembly.”

    Speaking to the media after Elahi’s meeting with Imran, PTI’s Fawad Chaudhry said that “if the governor does not accept the advice then, the assembly is automatically dissolved after 48 hours.”

    He said that a letter would be sent to former Punjab CM and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Hamza Shehbaz in the next two days for finalising an interim government in Punjab, adding that elections would take place in the next 90 days.

  • ‘Main reason for Imran-Bajwa’s differences is social media’: President Alvi

    ‘Main reason for Imran-Bajwa’s differences is social media’: President Alvi

    President Arif Alvi has offered to mediate between the Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

    In an interview with BBC Urdu on Thursday, Dr. Alvi said that it is now inevitable that simmering political tension be cooled down and advised political leadership to hold talks with each other.

    “It is my offer to them [political parties] to sit together and then senior leadership can hold talks,” said Dr Alvi.

    The president blamed social media when commenting on the misunderstandings between former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa and PTI Chairman Imran Khan.

    Misunderstandings began because of the undue importance given to social media, he reasoned, expressing the belief that the country’s decision-makers “are not able to handle social media properly” and that they should do a better job of it.

    When pressed if the cause of “friction” between former premier and ex-army chief was the appointment of then director-general (DG) of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Faiz Hameed, President Alvi said that he would not talk about any specific person or incident.

    “Who was not showing flexibility?” the President asked. “I was asking them to set-aside differences and ignore social media.”

    “People can’t forgive,” he remarked.

    Responding to a question about an extension in tenure offered to the former army chief by Imran Khan, President Alvi said he was not aware of such an offer.

    “This is what I am saying. Remove such misunderstandings by having a dialogue together,” he stressed. “Be it any party, opposition, government or the establishment, I am ready to bring people together.”

    The president said that Khan expressed satisfaction over the appointment of General Asim Munir as the current army chief when Alvi had consulted the PTI chairman. However, he said that he was not playing any role in conducting a dialogue between the current military leadership and Khan.

    He emphasised his offers of negotiations between the government alliance and PTI, saying he had urged them to “sit together”.

    “I am not talking about Imran Khan. I am saying that at least the political parties should negotiate with each other. After that, the major figures of the [political] parties can also meet,” he explained.

  • ‘3 shooter nahi thay’: JIT aur Imran Khan ki conflicting statements

    The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing the Wazirabad attack on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan while setting the record straight has said that there was only one shooter who attacked the former Prime Minister.

    A report page shared by Senior Journalist Kamran Shahid stated, “No credible/independent evidence has come on record which shows that there were no more than one fires/assailants.

    Kamran Shahid had shared the Punjab Forensic Report about the firing incident on January 3, rejecting claims of three shooters and also added that Khan was not shot four times on November 3, 2022, at Wazirabad.

    Reading out the Punjab Forensic Report about the firing incident in which the PTI chief was shot at, Kamran Shahid said that a “few” fragments of bullets hit him.

    “Few fragments of a bullet and a metallic particle hit Imran Khan,” said Shahid.

    On the contrary both Imran Khan and party leaders have repeatedly said that there were three shooters.

  • ‘Gen Bajwa ke kehnay pe Farah Khan mulk se bahir gayi hain’: Faisal Vawda

    Former Pakistan Thereek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Faisal Vawda has revealed that former First Lady, Bushra Bibi’s closest friend, Farah Khan was sent out of Pakistan to please former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

    “Former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa had knowledge [of the departure] and it was due to his orders that Farah Khan was sent out of Pakistan,” said Vawda while speaking on Hum News programme, ‘Breaking Views with Malick’.

    “Imran Khan would mind this and take this personally,” further said Vawda.

    It has been alleged by the current federal government that Farah Khan, a close friend of Bushra Bibi, to be involved in multiple irregularities that took place during the tenure of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

    Most recently, Farah Khan was alleged to have sold the Toshakhana watches that were gifted to Imran Khan by foreign dignitaries. In an interview with Geo’s Shahzeb Khanzada, a Dubai based businessman, Umar Farooq Zahoor alleged that Farah Khan sold him a Graff watch set for for $2 million in cash, worth approximately Rs280m at the time of sale in 2019.

  • ‘Imrani tolay ki jaali popularity aglay 3 mahinay mein apnay anjaam ko pohanchegi’: Rana Sanaullah

    ‘Imrani tolay ki jaali popularity aglay 3 mahinay mein apnay anjaam ko pohanchegi’: Rana Sanaullah

    Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah in a press conference today predicted that the popularity of the “Imrani tola [Memebers of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)]” will finish within the coming three months.

    Calling the PTI’s popularity fake, the minister said, “Government is trying to bring the country out of the economic crunch PTI left it in, and the fake popularity narrative that PTI claims to have will be shattered in a matter of three months.”

    Speaking about the Geneva Conference, Rana Sanaullah said that the world stands with Pakistan on the appeal of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, adding that Pakistan’s expectations have been fulfilled with the world helping the country beyond expectations.

    Declaring Chief Minister (CM) Punjab Pervaiz Elahi and PTI Chairman Imran Khan responsible for the dollar hike, he said that these people bought dollars and smuggled them abroad.

  • Trouble for Imran Khan, Asad Umar, Fawad Chaudhry as ECP issues arrest warrants for all three

    Trouble for Imran Khan, Asad Umar, Fawad Chaudhry as ECP issues arrest warrants for all three

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has issued bailable arrest warrants for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, along with two party leaders, Asad Umar and Fawad Chaudhry.

    The warrants were issued by ECP’s four-member bench headed by member Nisar Durrani hearing a contempt case against the electoral body and Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Sikander Sultan Raja.

    The bench, while rejecting the PTI leaders’ pleas for exemption, directed them to appear before it on the next hearing which is scheduled for January 17. The commission had reserved the verdict on their pleas on January 3.

    During the hearing today, the ECP rejected the pleas of PTI leaders seeking an exemption from appearing before the commission and issued arrest warrants for them against surety bonds worth Rs50,000 each.

    The bench, subsequently, adjourned the hearing till January 17.

    Both Asad Umar and Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter and showed their disapproval towards the the issuance of the bailable arrest warrants.

    In August last year, the ECP had issued a contempt notice to PTI leaders for insulting the election commission during various public meetings, press conferences and several interviews.

    The notice charged that they insulted and passed unparliamentary, intemperate and contemptuous remarks against the electoral body on various occasions.

  • ‘It was military vs PTI’: Gen Bajwa was actively involved in sending PTI govt packing, says Fawad

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry has said that in the no-confidence motion against his party’s Chairman and then-Prime Minister Imran Khan, it was actually the PTI versus the military.

    Fawad claimed during a BBC HARDTalk interview yesterday that “some army generals, as well as ex-chief General [Qamar Javed] Bajwa were actively involved in sending the PTI government home”.

    Establishment played a very active role in the ouster of Imran Khan

    “And in that conspiracy, some army generals were involved, there is no doubt about that and the establishment actually played a very active role in the ouster of Imran Khan. In fact, the last army chief was [also] actively involved in sending our government home,” he alleged.

    Host Stephen Sackur asked Fawad about DG ISI Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum’s press conference, in which he, alongside then ISPR chief Lt Gen Babar Iftikhar, said Imran Khan asked the military to perform an unconstitutional act during the no-confidence vote.

    Chaudhry responded: “The current [army] leadership has just assumed the office and we are hoping there will be a change in the policy, but the last chief was not speaking truth when he said we asked [for their] help. We only asked for their neutrality.”

    Unelected institutions like the judiciary and the military exercised their powers beyond Constitution

    Dismissing the notion that the PTI was against the military, Fawad said his party was not against anyone. “In Pakistan, unelected institutions like the judiciary and the military exercised their powers beyond Constitution [in the past], which is known to everyone.”

    Bygones are bygones: PTI looks forward to having good relations with US

    Talking about how Khan blamed United States for his ouster and then later changing his narrative that he wants to have good relations with US, Fawad said that the PTI never said it seeks a war with the superpower. “Instead, it wants good bilateral ties. No party wants confrontation with the US,” Fawad noted. However, at the same time the PTI doesn’t want any country including the US to dictate Pakistan, he opined.

    Saying bygones are bygones, Fawad said his party looks forward to having good relations with the US, and hopes the superpower too would like to collaborate with Pakistan’s most popular political party.

    Calling Osama bin Laden a “martyr” was a slip of a tongue

    To a question, he clarified that Imran never called Osama bin Laden a “martyr”, saying he had a slip of a tongue in one speech which was clarified later.

    Shehbaz govt ruined all efforts due to their ignorance of Afghanistan’s history and problems

    Chaudhry said the then-PTI government was holding “continuous negotiations” with the Afghan government “and we were close to actually resolve the issue”.

    He, however, blamed the incumbent government for “ruining” all efforts due to their “ignorance of Afghanistan’s history and problems”.

    PTI could wait for elections but….

    The PTI leader said his party could wait for elections “but this government is not ready to hold polls as they know people will oust them through vote”.

    He insisted that elections were needed for Pakistan and not for the PTI. “We are asking that elections should be held at the earliest so that a new responsible government can take care of economic affairs.”

    Zardari and Sharifs had put Pakistan into a vicious debt cycle

    Stephen Sackur said Pakistan’s debt stood at $116 billion when the PTI took over in 2018, but it rose to $230 billion when the party left government.

    Fawad responded saying his party’s government had to borrow funds to return the loans taken by the previous government. He maintained that his party’s government worked to restructure the loans and did as far as economy is concerned.

    He said, ” Zardari and Sharifs had put Pakistan into a vicious debt cycle.

    Imran gave the country one of the cleanest governments in 75 years of history

    Sackur said figures did not bear out his claim, referring to promises made by the PTI before elections, especially those about corruption, He said that Pakistan fell by 20 points on the corruption perception index (CPI).

    Fawad disagreed, arguing that these were the departments related to rule of law, for example judiciary, not the political side, that had contributed to that index. He said Imran gave the country one of the cleanest governments in its 75 years of existence.

    The PTI leader said it is not possible to create economic stability without political stability as [political uncertainty in the country is such that] no one knows who will rule the country three or five months from now.