LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan came down hard on the imported government’s ministers for issuing irresponsible statements against the Taliban-led Afghan administration in the backdrop of rising terrorism, warning that if the new Afghan government decided to stop cooperating with Pakistan, it could lead to a “never-ending” war against terrorism.
Addressing a seminar on the resurgence of terrorism in Pakistan via video link on Tuesday, PTI Chairman said that the government of crooks was not serious in dealing with the issue of terrorism, as they were more interested in ending their corruption cases due to which terrorism was rearing its ugly head again.
The TTP, which has ideological linkages with the Afghan Taliban, executed more than 100 attacks last year, most of which happened after August when the group’s peace talks with the Pakistan government began to falter. The ceasefire was formally ended last year on Nov 28 by the TTP.
He said that all stakeholders had sat down and were informed about the need for talks with the TTP and the plan to resettle their members. “A military operation can be a part of the overall peace settlement but it is never successful on its own.”
Imran also criticised Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah’s “irresponsible” statements about Pakistan taking action against TTP hideouts in Afghanistan.
He warned that if the new Afghan government decided to stop cooperating with Pakistan, it could lead to a “never-ending” war against terrorism.
Imran also questioned why recent incidents at the Pak-Afghan border were not taken up with the Afghan government, reiterating that another war against terrorism would become a curse for the country if relations with Afghanistan deteriorated.
He said that the federal government would need to tread carefully and seek KP’s input on the overall terror situation. He said that Pakistan should not seek help from the United States as it would lead to internal discord among locals if drone attacks were carried out.
During his address, Imran — whose party is in power in KP — said it was wrong to expect the provincial police to confront the rising wave of terrorism, adding that the terrorists were much more heavily equipped.
“To expect the police to face them (terrorists) with the kind of weapons they have is not possible. Rangers are present in Karachi and terrorism there is not at the level of KP. There is no comparison between them.”
He said terrorists operating in KP were “battle-hardened” with access to the latest weaponry abandoned by the US when it pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021.
Imran said it would be wrong to assume that the KP police could confront such terrorists, at least until the federal government did not pay full attention to the matter.
The PTI chief said terrorism was a very important issue for the country and could have greater consequences if not properly addressed, “especially at a time when our economic conditions can’t bear it at all”.
The PTI chief alleged that the federal government had withheld funds for the tribal districts and did not pay attention to the resettlement of 30,000-40,000 TTP members from Afghanistan.
Imran said the time immediately after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan was a “golden opportunity” to solve the TTP issue since the new Afghan government was “pro-Pakistan” and could exert influence on the TTP.
The seminar was also addressed by Chief Minister Khyber-Pakhtukhwa (KP) Mehmood Khan, PTI Senior leader Murad Saeed, Security analysts Dr. Amir Raza and Imtiaz Gull.
Speaking on the occasion, CM KP Mehmood Khan said that PTI has been in power in KP since 2013. He said that all-out efforts were made to ensure lasting peace in the volatile province.
He said that all institutions were destroyed in former FATA and the PTI government was leaving no stone unturned to uplift the tribal districts.
Speaking on the occasion, Murad Saeed said that the US and West were making secret documents public after every 20 years; however we never brought the fact before the masses ever.
He said that when US was leaving Afghanistan there was apprehension of eruption of civil war in Afghanistan. Murad raised question as what happened all of a sudden that friendly neighboring country turned foe.
Murad reminded that during Imran Khan-led government, neither there was any military operation nor drone strike in any part of the country.
He said that the US started blaming other when it suffered defeat, adding that it was being said that Imran Khan should have not said absolutely not because it upset the US.
Murad stated that the US and its facilitators ousted Imran Khan’ government, adding that after regime change operation, the neighbor upset and terrorism started.
Meanwhile, Khan while quoting the “media reports”, claimed that members of the joint investigation team (JIT) probing the Wazirabad attack on him were being “pressurised” to distance themselves from the findings of the probe.
The former prime minister had sustained a bullet wound to his leg on November 3 after an armed attack on his container, as he led the PTI’s ‘Haqeeqi Azadi March’ in Wazirabad.
One person had died in the incident, while several members of the PTI chairman’s close circle, including Senator Faisal Javaid, former Sindh governor Imran Ismail, Ahmad Chattha and Imran Yousaf, were injured.
The PTI chairman had alleged that three people – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and a senior military officer, were behind the botched assassination attempt on his life.
Earlier this month, senior PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry had claimed that the JIT constituted to investigate the November 3 attack on Imran had found that there was a planned attempt to assassinate him.
Sharing the findings of the JIT, Fawad had said that by reducing the number of police personnel in Gujarat, an opportunity was provided for the attack and subsequently an assassination attempt was made on Imran.
“The revelations made in the JIT report will be made public soon,” the senior party leader had said, while speaking to the media. “A well-thought-out narrative was chalked out to give the assassination attempt the cover of religiously-motivated crime,” he had added.
Previously, however, contrary to PTI chairman and deposed premier Imran Khan’s claim, the JIT had found no evidence of a second attacker.
Last week, the forensic report of the attack had revealed that Imran was hit by three bullet fragments and a metal piece in the attack.
Meanwhile, the alleged attacker’s lawyer has claimed that the assassination attempt on the ousted premier was in fact a “self-scripted drama” and a “lie”.
“The JIT was formed before the FIR was even filed,” the lawyer had criticised, claiming that “the Chief Minister [Punjab] had made Ghulam Mehmood Dogar the head of the investigation as per Imran Khan’s wishes”.
He had also alleged that the JIT was “not making evidence a part of the record” and that “the video of Moazzam Gondal being shot is not part of the record” while “attempts were made to remove the police official’s statements”.
“The purpose of the JIT is to protect Imran and his guard,” he had claimed, “if they would conduct a proper investigation, Imran’s guard would turn out to be the killer”.
In a turn of events today however, the PTI chief alleged that the “JIT members [are] being pressurised to distance themselves from the findings” of the investigation.
Imran considered this to be further proof of his “conviction that powerful quarters were behind the assassination attempt”.
The Interior Ministry and the Punjab inspector general police were informed today of the differences emerging in the JIT team.
The four members of the investigating team and CCPO Lahore have disagreements over the probe.
Sources said that the CCPO has handed over the investigation to an anti-corruption officer, Anwar Shah, who is overseeing the questioning of the accused, while the JIT members are not being permitted to investigate him.
RO CTD Lahore Naseeb Ulllah Khan, RPO DG Khan Syed Khurram Ali, AIG Monitoring Punjab Ihsan Ullah Chohan and SP Potohar Division Malik Tariq Mehboob are among the dissenting JIT members
In this regard, senior leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Fawad Chaudhry and Asad Umar expressed their dismay with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as they called it out for its “bias”.
The condemnation by both leaders came hours after the ECP’s decision to issue bailable arrest warrants for PTI chief Imran Khan and other senior party leaders, Asad Umar and Fawad Chaudhry, for failing to appear before the commission in contempt proceedings.
The ECP had initiated contempt proceedings against Imran as well as Umar and Fawad for constantly issuing statements against the electoral body and its chief election commissioner.
In a tweet, Fawad said that “the ECP’s decision to issue a bailable warrant is an insult to the high court’s decision”.
“The case had been fixed for January 17, which was moved up to today against the rules and the case was decided,” he claimed.
Fawad went on to say that it was “yet another biased decision” by the ECP members and asserted that the PTI leaders would “pursue a contempt of court case against this decision in the high court”.
Meanwhile, Asad Umar took the opportunity to remind the electoral watchdog to focus on its primary responsibilities instead.
“They are engaged in these tasks instead of conducting elections,” he said, adding that “they are themselves in contempt of court for not having conducted Islamabad [local body] elections.”
