Former prime minister Imran Khan has said that his party, PTI, would protest if the government does not respect the Supreme Court’s July 12 decision on the reserved seats and granted an extension to Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa.
“The situation in Bangladesh and Pakistan is not different, a crackdown was carried out on our party in the name of November, half of the leadership was jailed, the other half went underground, the CJP and the Election Commission of Pakistan were in cahoots,” he told reporters in an informal conversation at Adiala Jail on Monday.
Khan is incarcerated for more than a year as his legal battles go on. Last month, his party’s hopes were dashed when the national-graft buster and the Lahore police arrested him after his conviction in the “un-Islamic” case was overturned. It was the last legal case.
The PTI has described such cases as “politically motivated”, a charge which the government denies. Khan has also made conditional offers to the army and a conditional apology for the May 9 events.
Khan alleged that the government feared that if the constituencies were opened, the “theft would be exposed, that is why it wants to place its judges in the tribunals.”
He accused the government of not giving the reserved seats to the PTI and violating the Constitution by not holding elections in the two provinces when the-then Supreme Court gave the orders. “Now the government is violating the Constitution by not implementing the SC’s decision.”
“I have never asked the party for a movement. There was no call for peaceful protest before May 9, but if the Supreme Court’s decision is not honoured, I will call for a street movement,” Khan said.
The former prime minister added that when the government “panics” when it comes to know that he has contacts with the establishment.
“Although I have no contact or conversation with anyone, I have given Mahmood Khan Achakzai the authority to negotiate with the politicians, but the PTI will not negotiate, if we negotiate with the politicians, it means accepting the incumbent government.”
