Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan rejected his own statement on Tuesday suggesting the extension of the tenure of Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa till the next elections.
In a meeting with journalists, Khan said: “I never talked about the extension of the army chief’s tenure, I just proposed to defer the appointment of the army chief till the new elections.”
“I did not say anything to elicit a statement from Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR)”, Khan added.
The PTI chief also decided to call on the nation to protest against the government in September.
PTI ❤️ ARMY or PTI ARMY: PTI former ministers clash on Bajwa
Shireen Mazari, senior leader of PTI, took a jibe at anchor Kamran Khan, accusing him and others of misquoting Imran Khan regarding his suggestion to extend the tenure of COAS.
“What Khan actually said on army chief and what Kamran Khan and PMLN trolls deliberately tried to misquote. The problem here is when the anchor wants to assert his own view or agenda despite IK making his position clear on the same issue. Such anchors should do monologues instead”, she said.
Fawad Chaudhry agrees with IK’s suggestion to extend COAS tenure
On the contrary, another senior leader of PTI, Fawad Chaudhry, took to Twitter to give approval to his party chairman Imran Khan’s suggestion to extend the COAS tenure.
“Yesterday, Imran Khan presented a practical formula for the country’s political future and the restoration of democracy. There is a need to move forward on this formula. The economic condition of the country will not be able to bear the burden of political instability. The status quo can be maintained for the elections.” he tweeted.
Khan ko kya hua? IK says Gen Bajwa should be given an extension till the next elections
In an interview with Kamran Khan on Dunya News aired on Monday evening, Imran Khan suggested that the COAS, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, be given an extension in his tenure of service.
Talking about the possibility of appointing a new Army Chief, Khan said, “There can be a provision in relevance to the selection of the new COAS. When the next government comes, they can appoint a new COAS.”
When Kamran Khan asked Imran Khan if he was suggesting that until a new government comes to power, Gen Bajwa should continue as army chief, Khan said the country is facing extraordinary circumstances because of floods. He was of the view that for now, the main focus should be on how to get the country out of the crisis.
During the show, he reiterated that the appointment of a new army chief should be on merit.
“Neither Asif Ali Zardari nor Nawaz Sharif is qualified for taking this decision on merit,” he said.
It is pertinent to mention that COAS Qamar Javed Bajwa is due to retire in November this year.
Speaking on general elections, Khan said, “Mai baat karnay ke liye tayyar hoon”, [I am ready to talk with the government].
Khan confirmed meeting with former US ambassador
Imran Khan confirmed that he met with former American ambassador and CIA analyst Robin Raphel. He said, “She is not associated with the government, but is working with a think tank”, adding that Pak-US relations should be good.
However, earlier PTI had denied that the meeting took place. Fawad Chaudhry had categorically said that the meeting between Khan and Raphel took place three years ago.
During the show, Khan also clarified that he is not anti-America.
The PTI chief added that his party’s relationship with the US was not tense, but tensions arose after Khan visited Russia, right on the eve of when President Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine.
“I didn’t know”, he stated, adding that the US was upset following its tensions with Russia.
Since being voted out of power, Imran Khan has blamed America for the “regime change”, while also attacking the establishment in thinly veiled words for turning “neutral”.
