ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday accused his predecessor Imran Khan of committing treason by peddling the “foreign conspiracy” theory after his ouster from office in April, denying allegations his government had any hand in the recent audio leaks that have whipped up a political storm in the country.
Khan has used a diplomatic cypher as the basis to accuse his political opponents of being part of a Washington-backed conspiracy to oust him from power. PM Sharif, his coalition government and the US have rejected Khan’s accusations.
The matter once again became a topic of public debate after the emergence of another purported audio clip online last Friday. In the clip, Khan, his then principal secretary Azam Khan and two top aides, Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Asad Umar could purportedly be heard strategizing the "foreign conspiracy."
“He [Khan] has committed treason against the people of Pakistan and has inflicted irreparable damage to Pakistan’s reputation and standing among the comity of nations,” Sharif said in a news conference in Islamabad.
The government has constituted a high-powered panel to probe the recent audio leaks from the PM Office and has termed it a breach of national security.
Sharif recalled the events of April 3, when the then opposition tabled a vote of no-confidence against Khan. The deputy speaker then, Qasim Suri, had dismissed the motion on the basis of the cypher.
Khan subsequently dissolved the assembly, a summary of which was approved by President Arif Alvi within 20 minutes.
“This was the foundation of the conspiracy,” he said, adding that Khan wasted the nation’s time for the next five months with his “foreign conspiracy” allegations.
He accused Khan of confusing voters and referring to the US, said the former premier had “damaged Pakistan’s relations with the world’s biggest power.”
“Today all the links of that conspiracy stand connected to Imran Khan and there is solid evidence of it,” Sharif said.
Sharif described Khan’s campaign against the government as “the worst dishonesty” and accused his predecessor of playing with the country’s interests.
“Is there any doubt left after that [audio leak] as to who committed the real conspiracy,” he asked, adding that his government was trying to repair Pakistan’s damaged relations with the US.
“This is not less than any treason against the nation,” he said. “The whole nation has seen the faces of the conspirators.”
PM Sharif said no one would place their trust in the Prime Minister’s Office after the emergence of the audio leaks. He added that “these audio leaks have rendered an irreparable loss to the nation and compensation for this loss was not easy.”
“Thank God, Allah has vindicated us all,” he said, denying the government had any hand in leaking the clips. “He [Khan] is a fraudster who isolated the nation, attacked the armed forces by calling them neutral and chowkidar [gatekeeper],” the prime minister added.
He recalled the invaluable services rendered by the armed forces in Pakistan’s war against militancy.
Sharif said the cabinet had approved an investigation into the audio leaks. He said the nation would be apprised of the results of the probe.
“This person [Khan] if imposed again on this country, will destroy Pakistan and its institutions,” he said. “He is the biggest threat, he will defame Pakistan.”
Sharif said a cypher received from foreign missions cannot be decoded. “If it is, then all the cables from all embassies can be leaked or stolen,” he said, reiterating that the controversial cypher’s copy was still missing from the Prime Minister’s Office.
“His [Khan’s] audio leaks have proven that there were four people behind the so-called conspiracy,” Sharif said. “What other evidence do you need?”
On the army chief’s appointment, the prime minister said it would be done constitutionally. Pakistan’s current army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, is set to retire in November this year after six years in office.
“It has a process in the law and the constitution, and it will be followed,” he said. “You need not worry about it.”