Imran Khan asks party to launch strong political movement after Ramzan, engage with Opposition
Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has asked his party to launch a strong political movement after Ramzan and directed two senior leaders to contact opposition, The Express Tribune reported.
Khan's lawyer Faisal Chaudhry made the announcement while speaking to reporters outside Adiala Jail after meeting PTI founder. Chaudhry said Imran Khan asked PTI leaders - Asad Qaiser and Omar Ayub to establish communication with opposition parties. He also called on establishment to consider facts that he has mentioned in his open letters.
Imran Khan's lawyer said that PTI leaders having legal cases lodged against them face controlled trials in Adiala Jail while those who quit the party after May 9 protests have been spared legal consequences.
Faisal Chaudhry said that PTI has filed a petition in Islamabad High Court for requesting an open trial. He claimed that lawyers and journalists were selectively permitted inside the courtroom.
"Lawyers and journalists are selectively allowed inside the courtroom. The judiciary is being crushed, and basic rights are being violated," The Express Tribune quoted him as saying.
Imran Khan's lawyer called events that happened on May 9, 2023 a false flag operation and demanded an independent judicial commission to conduct probe into the incidents.
He further said, "We seek justice under the Constitution and law. We disagree with the Supreme Court bench's remarks on military courts." Faisal Chaudhry also quoted Imran Khan to highlight economic crisis and human rights violations in Pakistan.
"The sanctity of homes was violated in crackdowns against PTI. Basic human rights are being trampled. With media censorship and internet restrictions, who will invest in Pakistan?", Faisal Chaudhry quoted Imran Khan as saying.
He claimed that Pakistan suffered an economic loss of USD 45 million after PTI's removal and PM Shehbaz Sharif-led government was formed "on the shoulders of Form 47," The Express Tribune reported.
Last week, Imran Khan wrote a second open letter to Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir, alleging that the country's largest political party is being "targeted," Geo News reported.
"I wrote an open letter to the Army Chief (you) with sincere intentions for the betterment of the country and the nation, aiming to bridge the growing divide between the military and the public. However, the response was extremely irresponsible and unserious," Geo News quoted the letter penned by Imran Khan.
PTI leader asserted that he had dedicated his entire life to bringing global recognition to Pakistan. "My 55 years of public life since the 1970s and my 30 years of earnings are fully transparent. My life and death are solely tied to Pakistan," the letter read.
Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan expressed his concerns regarding the military's image and the potential consequences of the widening gap between the public and the army, citing them as the reason for writing this letter.
Referring to his first letter to the Army Chief, Khan claimed that 90 per cent of the public would have supported the six points he had highlighted if they had been consulted. In the letter, he alleged that the government was installed by manipulating election results through pre-poll rigging.
"The authorities passed the 26th Constitutional Amendment through parliament to control the judiciary and Peca [Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act] to silence dissent," he added.
He noted that political instability and the "might is right" policy plunged the country's economy into chaos. Khan regretted that the country's "largest political party" was being targeted and all state institutions were being used for political engineering and revenge, according to Geo News report.
Referring to his imprisonment, he claimed that he had been placed in solitary confinement and deprived of sunlight for 20 days. "My exercise equipment, television, and even newspapers have been taken away. They restrict my access to books whenever they wish. Besides those 20 days, I was also locked up for another 40 hours. In the last six months, I have been allowed to speak to my sons only three times," he added.
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