ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan said on Thursday he had hoped that a change in Pakistan’s military leadership with the appointment of General Syed Asim Munir as the new army chief would “change” his and his party’s fortunes but “hardships have increased.”
Khan was ousted in a parliamentary vote of no-confidence in April 2022, which he blamed on a plot by Washington, backed by Pakistan’s now coalition government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the army under then army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa. All three deny the allegations.
In the months since Bajwa’s retirement in November, Khan’s criticism of the general has grown increasingly harsh and he has called for him to face court martial for plotting against his democratically elected government. However, Khan had so far not made remarks critical of Gen. Munir because of what analysts widely say is the hope that the new army leadership would be willing to work with his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
In his farewell speech in November last year, Bajwa referred to Khan’s allegations as an “inappropriate onslaught” and rejected them.
“For us, nothing has changed,” Khan told the BBC when asked if there had been a change in the “establishment’s attitude” toward him and his party with the appointment of the new army chief.
He said a lot of court cases were filed against him and other senior leaders under Bajwa’s rule and they were subjected to “custodial torture.”
“Till now [after Munir’s appointment], there has been no change and, in many ways, hardships have increased,” Khan said.
Khan is currently facing over 70 court cases, including one registered against him on terrorism charges this week after his supporters clashed with police in the eastern city of Lahore. He is also charged with treason in other cases, which carries the death sentence in Pakistan.
In response to a question about whether he was willing to negotiate with the army, Khan said:
“Actually, I was asked if the [military] establishment talks to you, will you speak to them … I told them that I am a political person and that I am ready to talk to everyone except thieves, those who have looted the country’s wealth.”
However, he clarified that he had neither invited the army chief nor PM Sharif for talks.
“I just said one thing; that if you want to pull the country out of this crisis, then there is no other way but free and fair elections,” he said. “To reach that end, we will talk to whoever wants to talk to us, for elections.”
“I do not need anyone,” Khan said about media reports that he was desperate to meet the new army chief, adding that the public stood by him and his party:
“Hence, you don’t need any props or crutches.”
