PTI Chairman Imran Khan addresses supporters in Lahore
Ousted prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday urged all Pakistanis—both his supporters and detractors—to get ready for his “call to reach Islamabad,” claiming this will put the country on the path to achieving “real” independence and democracy.
Addressing thousands of people at the Greater Iqbal Park in Lahore—the third and final “power show” planned by the PTI to protest Khan’s ouster in a vote of no-confidence—he reiterated his claims that he would “never accept the imported government.” The PTI chairman has repeatedly accused the incumbent coalition government of being part of a “foreign conspiracy” hatched by the U.S. against his government, citing a diplomatic cable authored by Pakistan’s former ambassador to Washington. The current government, led by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, has repeatedly denied this, while the military has also stressed that the cable contained “harsh language” that could be described as “interference” but was not tantamount to “conspiracy.”
Khan concluded Thursday’s rally by asking supporters to pray for the party’s success on the night of April 27 and taking an oath from the crowd that they would continue their struggle mode to achieve “real independence” and democracy in the country until fresh elections were announced.
Earlier, Khan said that he respected the Pakistan Army and police as state institutions, but could not halt the momentum of the “independence movement.” In what has widely been perceived as a message to the security establishment, Khan said even though “they” had made a mistake, “they” could now rectify it by holding early elections. This has become routine for Khan, whose speeches since his ouster have stopped short of outright blaming the establishment for his ouster but have contained numerous euphemisms and hints that suggest he believes “they” are barring the announcement of early elections.
Reiterating his allegations of the incumbent government being corrupt, and being formed through a “foreign conspiracy,” Khan rejected authorities’ vow to constitute a commission to probe the diplomatic cable that he maintains “proves” his allegations. “We will not accept any commission formed by this government,” he said, adding that the issue should be raised in an open hearing of the Supreme Court. “When the cable will be investigated openly, only then will Pakistanis know the conspiracy hatched against my government,” he claimed.
Khan claims he was ousted because “foreign powers” did not care for his “independent foreign policy.” According to him, his visit to Moscow on the eve of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and his campaign against Islamophobia were not liked by “foreign masters.” In this regard, he reiterated his admiration for India’s foreign policy, claiming its ruler Narendra Modi acted in the best interests of his nation.
The PTI chairman also continued his harangues against dissident party MNAs who had refused to support him in the vote of no-confidence, urging his supporters to “promise” that they would never vote for them in future as that would be “treason.” He also questioned the judiciary over whether it was a violation of law and constitution that an MNA elected on a PTI ticket was “accepting bribes” to vote against his party.
There has, as yet, been no evidence provided of any “bribes” being given to the dissident MNAs to switch their support.
The ousted prime minister reiterated his verbal attacks on Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja—nominated as the PTI’s candidate for the top post of the Election Commission of Pakistan—accusing him of deciding all the cases against the PTI government and supporting the PMLN. Just a year ago, Khan had expressed “full confidence” in Raja’s “independence” and “impartiality.” Referring to the foreign funding case against the PTI, Khan claimed that his party wanted its case to be heard simultaneously with the ones filed against the PMLN and PPP; the case against the PTI has been pending since 2014, while the cases against the other two parties were filed in November 2020.
Khan claimed his government was removed from power when it had placed the country on the path to progress—a hotly contested claim from the incumbent government, which has lamented the prevailing economic crisis—through increased remittances, tax collection, and development. “The unemployment level was at its lowest; we were ahead of everyone,” he claimed. “Our government also handled the coronavirus in an exemplary manner as we saved lives and the employment of our poor people,” he added.
On the controversy over his retaining expensive gifts from the Toshakhana, the prime minister said his government had changed the policy allowing leaders to keep state gifts after paying 15 percent of their value by raising it to 50 percent. “I purchased all the gifts by paying 50 percent price,” he claimed—though records indicate otherwise. “The proceeds after selling those gifts were used for the construction of roads,” he claimed.
While the PTI did not announce any formal march or campaign, observers say it is likely planning large protests against the incumbent government after Eidul Fitr.
Other leaders
Prior to Khan’s speech, other leaders of the PTI and its allied parties addressed the crowd, with a majority reiterating the PTI chairman’s claims of striving to make Pakistan an independent state through an independent foreign policy.
PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi alleged that anti-Pakistan elements were now trying to get Khan disqualified through the ECP and ban the PTI from participating in elections with the foreign funding case. He urged the crowd to ensure this “scheme” was not allowed to succeed.
Former interior minister Sheikh Rashid of the Awami Muslim League, meanwhile, alleged that PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari had gotten his wife, former premier Benazir Bhutto, killed and come to power through fake documents. He also accused Zardari of having Benazir’s brothers, Murtaza and Shahnawaz, killed. He did not offer any evidence of these allegations, which are even less believable considering that Zardari and Bhutto did not get married until 1987—two years prior to Shahnawaz’s murder.
Repeating a common refrain of the PTI, he claimed Pakistan was on the verge of “civil war.”
Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid) leader Moonis Elahi lauded PTI’s women MPAs, saying they had stood firm against the opposition in the Punjab Assembly. In a blatantly misogynistic remark, he asked the women MPAs to “gift” Punjab chief minister-designate Hamza Shehbaz a vanity kit, claiming the PMLN leader was “always interested” in his make-up.