Ex-Pak PM Imran Khan asks army chief to apologise for his ‘illegal’ abduction

Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan, who has been in jail since August last in different cases, on Tuesday asked Army chief General Asim Munir to apologise to him for his “illegal” abduction and for backing the ‘London Plan’ and vowed not to cut a deal with the powerful military.

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan(REUTERS)

“On the morning of May 9, 2023, my illegal abduction from the High Court was part of the London Plan (to topple the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government and impose a hybrid system led by the Sharif family on the country), for which General Asim Munir should apologise to me,” Khan said on X.

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It is believed that his family is running his social media account.

Criticising Gen Munir, Khan said: “It is the misfortune of this country that a self-proclaimed King (Gen Munir) has taken hold of all the decision-making. I am currently in prison because if I am free, it will challenge the power of that one person.”

Khan said the Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) – the media wing of the armed forces – and the Chief of Army Staff are making threatening political statements and involving the army in politics which is tarnishing the image of the army.

The powerful Army, which has ruled the coup-prone country for more than half of its 75-plus years of existence, has hitherto wielded considerable power in matters of security and foreign policy.

ISPR DG Maj-Gen Ahmed Sharif last week said that any dialogue with the PTI could happen only if it “earnestly apologises publicly in front of the nation, promises to adopt constructive politics, and forgoes politics of anarchy”.

Khan said when political statements and press conferences are held, political parties have the right to respond to them.

“When the government is given to people lacking democratic mandate, the country becomes an epicentre of corruption and chaos. The chaos that is seen in (Pakistan-occupied) Kashmir today is likely to spread across Pakistan. Form 47 (fake result) non-democratic governments have been established in the entire country.

“When a government is elected democratically, it is backed by the people. People value their elected government and if any issues arises, it is resolved through dialogue,” he said, adding that people place no trust in the imposed governments in Gilgit-Baltistan, PoK, Punjab and Pakistan; hence the widespread unrest and frustration.

He said further backlash will ensue against Form 47 governments when the budget is announced.

He further said an artificial set-up has been imposed on the people in the country.

“This government has absolutely no authority. An unconstitutional institution like SIFC (Special Investment Facilitation Council, an initiative of the army) has been imposed on Pakistan and no one dares to question it. It was established with the sole purpose of bringing investments, while the Pakistan Business Council has openly stated that investors are withdrawing their investments instead of investing into the country.

“On the one hand, the nation was misled with the false hopes of the agricultural revolution and on the other hand, wheat importation to embezzle billions of rupees, has devastated the wheat farmer economically,” he added.

Khan said in this bogus setup, the government is given to those who have all their wealth lying outside in the form of dollars.

“A leader has to make sacrifices and this group of Nawaz and Zardari will not sacrifice under any circumstances nor will they bring their money back to the country. General Musharraf and later ISI provided details to everyone including me on their looted money and today they have been imposed on us and their corruption charges are being cleared. The purpose of imposing this fake system on the nation is only to increase the power of this one man (Gen Munir) who has destroyed the entire country for his personal power,” he said and vowed not to cut a deal with the military.

“This country is my country and I will never leave it. Moreover, any deal is also out of the question. Pakistan is being run in a dictatorial manner. Our total revenue is 13.9 trillion rupees, while we have to pay 9.8 trillion rupees annually as interest. The country can never progress with such a punitive use of coercive measures,” Khan said.