Amid reports that Punjab Assembly Speaker Pervaiz Elahi had asked the PTI to reconsider its resignations from the National Assembly, PTI chairman Imran Khan ruled out the possibility of withdrawing the resignations.
In a meeting with media persons in Peshawar, Imran said the PTI would not return to parliament and termed the speaker’s summons to PTI lawmakers to verify their resignation letters a ‘big trap’.
Imran said his party would approach the Supreme Court for its right to protest. “Our strategy for the next long march would be dependent on the SC’s decision on the petition which would be filled tomorrow by our legal team,” he added. Imran also rejected the alleged audio tape of property tycoon Malik Riaz wherein he was conveying Imran’s message to PPP chief Asif Ali Zardari for a deal ahead on the no-confidence motion against him. He denied contacting Malik Riaz for a patch-up with the ex-president and PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari. Speaking about the appointment of the army chief, Imran said he did not know about the candidates nor did he think about the procedure. He claimed there were “individuals within institutions” who had “opinions on certain issues”. However, he did not name the individuals, says a news report.
His approach towards the establishment during the meeting remained cautious. “Only the army and the PTI can keep Pakistan intact,” he opined. Imran claimed that he came under pressure during his government to recognise Israel. He did not name who put pressure on him, saying he would not want to name them. The PTI chairman said the incumbent government wanted to “recognise Israel and build good ties with India” at the behest of the United States.
The PTI chairman reiterated that he had not made a deal with anyone and that he had called off the long march on May 26 to avoid bloodshed as chaos gripped Islamabad. “I have been saying this for the last 26 years that Zardari and PML-N are the same.” Imran insisted he wasn’t aware that Russia was going to invade Ukraine on the same day he met Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Speaking to Sky News, Imran said: “How the hell was I supposed to know that the day I landed in Moscow that Putin was going into Ukraine.
“I have never believed in military solutions, ours was a bilateral meeting, it was planned long before. We didn’t realise that when I would reach there Putin would go into Ukraine. How was I supposed to know and how can you be punished for that?” The ousted premier added he is against military solutions in Ukraine and the purpose of his visit to the Kremlin was to discuss bilateral agreements. He was also questioned about his government’s close ties with China and Russia, with Imran stating that he was elected to serve the people of Pakistan. “There are 50 million people in Pakistan below the poverty line, I was not elected for them to correct all the wrongs that are going on in the world.”
He added: “My responsibility was to my country and so all my relationships, whether it was with China, with the United States, with Russia, were for the benefits of our own people.” Imran also accused India of violating United Nations resolutions in Kashmir, saying New Delhi has “illegally taken away the right of the Kashmiri people”. “Did anyone speak against it? There are atrocities going on in Kashmir, 100,000 people in Kashmir have died. Has anyone condemned India for that? No because India is an ally, allow us to be neutral too so we can look after our people.” Pakistan shares a large border with Afghanistan and Imran was asked about the Taliban takeover of the country last year. He said “there was never going to be a military solution” in Afghanistan. “I am not responsible or a spokesman for the Taliban, if there was any other solution after 20 years of war, you should have found some solution,” he said, adding that Pakistan has never supported the Taliban. “Pakistan is the collateral damage of Afghanistan.”
