Tag: Prime Minister Imran Khan

  • Military, civilian leadership has put full stop on Khan’s appeasement policy on terrorists: Bilawal

    Military, civilian leadership has put full stop on Khan’s appeasement policy on terrorists: Bilawal

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has said that negotiating with those people who don’t accept Pakistan and its constitution is not in favour of the country or it’s people.

    In an interview with German broadcaster DW Urdu, the foreign minister said that the previous government was asking the interim Afghan government to facilitate reconciliation with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and had plans to resettle the militants in Pakistan.

    “Every Pakistani was saying that terrorists who were involved in heinous attacks such as the Army Public School massacre could never be our friends”, said Bilawal.

    Earlier in an interview with CNBC, Bilawal said, “Unfortunately, following the fall of Kabul, the government that preceded ours started negotiating with these very same terrorist groups and without preconditions such as disarming.”

    The foreign minister said that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) coalition government and military leadership have “put a full stop to the policy of appeasement”.

    Citing the porous border with Afghanistan, the Foreign Minister said that the new government doesn’t have the capacity to man it.

    “We are confident that we’ll be able to take on the terrorist groups that are functioning within Pakistan,” he said.

    Discussing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, Bilawal said that if he strives to pursue a democratic path and commits to play a constitutional role, he can have a future, adding that Khan’s ouster through a vote of no-confidence motion was the first time parliament removed a prime minister in a democratic way.

    However, since his ouster, Khan has been asking the army for help in getting back to power, the foreign minister alleged.

     “If the military says it wants to change its controversial conduct constitutionally, it should be welcomed.”

    While responding to a question regarding the statement about Pakistan’s bankruptcy made by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Bilawal said: “He was talking in a political context at a political gathering and he was referring to the harsh economic times rather than speaking technically. He was talking in the overall context of the country.”

  • ‘Only one prime minister in Pakistan’s history was considered very honest’: CJP Bandial

    ‘Only one prime minister in Pakistan’s history was considered very honest’: CJP Bandial

    Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial has said that “Only one prime minister in Pakistan’s history was considered very honest.” The remarks were passed during a hearing of a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) plea against amendments in National Accountability Bureau (NAB) laws. The Chief Justice, however, did not name the Prime Minister in question.

    “One honest prime minister’s government was ended through 58 (2b). Article 58 (2b) was a draconian law. The court had said in 1993 that the government was [sent packing] in a wrong manner but only elections should be conducted now,” the CJP said.

    Justice Bandial also said that the judiciary did not want to meddle in the legislative and that it had not taken notice itself of the NAB amendments ibut a petition had been filed. He highlighted that the court had rued its decision once before as well.

    A three-member Supreme Court bench — comprising CJP Bandial, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah and Justice Ijazul Ahsan — PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s plea, which claims the new NAB laws are a “violation of fundamental rights

    The CJP said, “The PTI chief is not in the assembly and legislation like the NAB amendment is now becoming controversial.”

    Stating that the court has to determine what is standard of cases related to human rights, the government counsel asked, “Can anyone challenge legislation based on assumptions?”

    Replying to this, the CJP reiterated that Imran was no ordinary man but “the chief of a huge political party of the country and was a former prime minister”.

    Justice Bandial added: “His party decided to resign from the parliament due to political conflicts. His party then changed its mind and now they want to return. But they are not a part of parliament right now. But parliament is there.”

  • Committee formed to investigate stolen cipher from PM House

    The federal cabinet announced the formation of a committee to probe the diplomatic cipher that it was said has been ‘stolen’ from the records of the Prime Minister’s House, a statement issued by the premier’s office said.

    “The meeting was told that although there is a record of the receipt of the cipher sent to the former premier at the Prime Minister’s House, its copy is not available in the record,” said the statement. As per the law, the cable is property of the Prime Minister’s House, it added.

    The statement said that the meeting termed the ‘theft’ of the letter a serious matter and, following a detailed consultation, the cabinet formed a special committee to launch an investigation.

    The committee will recommend what legal action the government should take against former Prime Minister Imran Khan, the then principal secretary to prime minister Azam Khan, and former ministers.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Khan was ousted from power in a vote of no-confidence, however, the former Prime Minister has alleged that his government had received a threatening letter and that a foreign conspiracy was behind this.

  • ‘High hopes from youth and women’: Khan reveals plan for 2 July rally

    ‘High hopes from youth and women’: Khan reveals plan for 2 July rally

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan revealed his plans to lead the July 2 protest at the Islamabad Parade Ground against the “imported government” in a meeting of the party’s political committee.

    Khan said that he had high hopes from the youth and women of the country, urging them to register for the “tiger force”. He said that the youth and women were now politically more mature than ever, as is evident from their reaction against the ousting of his government.

    The meeting also had PTI’s Central Secretary General Asad Umar, Pervez Khattak, and Aamir Mehmood Kiyani in attendance.

    This is Khan’s second call for a protest since Azadi March.

  • ‘Will never compromise on defence and security of Pakistan’: PM Shehbaz

    ‘Will never compromise on defence and security of Pakistan’: PM Shehbaz

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif expressed commitment to restoring the role of provinces in the National Action Plan (NAP), which the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had allegedly ignored, in a meeting on 26 June.

    The 20-point NAP was drawn up after the December 2014 terrorist attack on the Army Public School (APS) in Peshawar.

    Sharif was of the view that the increase in terrorism was due to the ignorance of the NAP.

    “This role of the provinces will be restored that remained missing during the last four years,” said the PM.

    “Ensuring law and order is essential for restoring the national economy and development in the country. The fight against terrorism would continue till its elimination,” said Shehbaz. He further pledged to never compromise on the defence and security of Pakistan.

    He said that the entire country was united in the effort to eradicate terrorism, standing behind the armed forces and law-enforcement agencies.

    The meeting also reviewed the steps taken to eliminate the source of terror financing and relevant laws.

  • Khan says Pakistan ke teen hissay hongay, Shehbaz warns him not to cross limits

    Khan says Pakistan ke teen hissay hongay, Shehbaz warns him not to cross limits

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif warned Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Thursday, saying that his recent remarks on Pakistan make him “unfit for public office”.

    Khan in an interview with Sami Ibrahim for Bol News programme ‘Tajzia’ said that if Pakistan goes bankrupt, then the country will have to face denuclearisation, predicting that the country would then be divided into three parts.

    Do your politics but don’t dare to cross limits & talk about division of Pakistan

    PM Shehbaz tweeted: “While I am in Turkey inking agreements, Imran Niazi is making naked threats against the country. If at all any proof was needed that Niazi is unfit for public office, his latest interview suffices.”

    “Do your politics but don’t dare to cross limits and talk about [the] division of Pakistan,” he warned the PTI chairperson.

    Pakistan will have to face de-nuclearisation, the country would then be divided into three parts

    Imran Khan in an interview aired on Wednesday said that the establishment needs to make the right decisions and if they don’t, “the army will be destroyed”.

    Khan questioned what would happen if the country went bankrupt, saying the army will be the worst hit. And if Pakistan goes bankrupt, then according to Khan, Pakistan will have to face de-nuclearisation, predicting that the country would then be divided into three parts.

    Khan said that the current political situation was an equal problem for the establishment and the country.

    He said, “If the establishment doesn’t make the right decisions then I can assure you in writing that the army and they will be destroyed. Pakistan is going towards default. If right decisions aren’t made, then the country will be on a suicidal path.”

    Imran also added that as prime minister, he didn’t have absolute power. “Everyone knows where the real power lies.”

  • PM says ‘no question of cut in HEC budget’, two days after educationist raises issue in Op-ed

    PM says ‘no question of cut in HEC budget’, two days after educationist raises issue in Op-ed

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said there is no question of a cut in the budget of the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

    “There is no question of a cut in the budget of Higher Education Commission. I am aware of the negative effect that cuts have had on higher education during the past four years. I have given clear directions to Planning Commission & Ministry of Finance in this regard,” he wrote in a tweet.

    Two days before PM’s statement, an opinion piece was published in The News titled ‘Abandoning higher education‘ by Dr Ayesha Razzaque.

    “For the next fiscal year, the HEC requested a recurrent budget of Rs104 billion. However, a few days ago an official letter (dated May 23, 2022) from the Finance Division regarding the 2022-23 budget emerged. It directs the HEC to prepare a new budget for next year that fits into Rs30 billion, – less than a third of what was requested and less than half of this year’s Rs65.25 billion. Here I would like to acknowledge that Federal Minister for Planning and Development Dr Ahsan Iqbal has voiced his opposition to this news.”

    Dr Ayesha Razzaque took to Twitter to share PM’s statement.

    A thread by Dr Razzaque on the issue of HEC budget can be accessed here.

  • Videos being prepared for my character assassination, says Khan

    Videos being prepared for my character assassination, says Khan

    Former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday claimed that the Sharif family is preparing to launch a campaign against him after Eid.

    Expressing his views during an interview with actor Shaan Shahid on Hum News, Khan said, “Now that Eid is over, you will see they [Sharif family] are fully prepared for my character assassination. They have hired companies that are readying the material.”

    “I had to face mafias, the biggest of which is the Sharif mafia […] they always attack on a personal level because they are indulging in corruption for the past 35 years. When someone [points out] their corruption, they attack a person’s character,” said Khan.

    “Instead of responding to the theft of billions of rupees, the Sharif family will focus on immorality,” Khan said, adding that they had previously pursued a fake case against his ex-wife Jemima Goldsmith.

    “What was Jemima’s crime? She was my wife. Now they have Farah Khan because she is close to Bushra Bibi,” he added.

    He went on to say that the Sharifs had also made further preparations and “made videos” similar to the ones of former Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and late Judge Arshad Malik.

    “This is mafia style. I only want the nation to understand that if you want to smear anyone’s name, there are companies that can help you achieve this.”

    He added that the PTI had announced its long march to Islamabad by the end of May due to which the Sharifs wanted to lower his respect in the eyes of the public and assassinate his character.

    He added that 60 per cent of the federal cabinet was out on bail. “The father (Shehbaz) is on bail and so is the son (Hamza). Maryam is also out on bail and Nawaz Sharif has been convicted [while] his sons have fled abroad. So what [other] defence will they have?”

    He said that in a democracy, they were required to give an answer for the allegations levelled against them. “You can’t come up in any democracy if you are out on bail; you can’t get any position.”

  • UK distances from Pak ‘political affairs’ after Khan’s ex-brother-in-law extends support

    UK distances from Pak ‘political affairs’ after Khan’s ex-brother-in-law extends support

    British Foreign Office minister Lord Zac Goldsmith has landed himself in trouble after he tweeted in support of former Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan.

    On April 10, Zac Goldsmith — whose elder sister Jemima was once married to Khan — said that he was “sad” at the developments in Pakistan. Zac Goldsmith tweeted: “Imran Khan is a good and decent man, one of the least corruptible politicians on the world stage. I have no doubt he will be returned with a big majority in the upcoming elections.”

    British media reported that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office has slapped down Foreign Office minister Lord Goldsmith after he interfered in Pakistani politics over the ousting of Khan as Pakistan’s premier through a vote of no-trust.

    Downing Street was questioned if Lord Goldsmith, who is Foreign Office minister for the Pacific and the international environment, was speaking on behalf of the British government. A spokesperson responded: “With regard to Pakistan, we respect Pakistan’s democratic system and we would not get into its domestic political affairs. We have longstanding ties with Pakistan and are monitoring developments.”

    Zac and Jemima Goldsmith’s brother Ben Goldsmith also announced support for Imran Khan on Twitter following Khan’s ouster. He said: “My brother-in-law @ImranKhanPTI is a good and honourable man, motivated only by a strong desire to do good for his country.”

    His record as PM is exceptional, most of all on the biggest issue of our time: Pakistan under Imran is now a world leader on environmental restoration.”

    During Zac Goldsmith’s campaign against London Mayor Sadiq Khan, Imran Khan had supported Zac Goldsmith and urged his followers to support his election bid. Sadiq Khan had expressed his bewilderment over Imran Khan’s support for Zac Goldsmith.

  • Shehbaz Sharif’s election as Prime Minister sparks meme fest

    Shehbaz Sharif’s election as Prime Minister sparks meme fest

    The Joint Opposition’s candidate Shehbaz Sharif was elected as the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan, after the former Prime Minister Imran Khan was voted out of office through a no-confidence motion on Saturday, April 9.

    Shehbaz bagged a total of 174 votes as opposed to PTI’s candidate Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Qureshi received no votes after his party decided to boycott the polling process.

    Shehbaz bagged a total of 174 votes as opposed to PTI’s candidate Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Qureshi received no votes after his party decided to boycott the polling process.

    Shehbaz Sharif’s election has sparked a meme fest on Twitter, have a look: