On Wednesday, former prime minister Imran Khan projected that the current government will only hold office for a brief period—roughly five to six months.
Imran highlighted topics in an informal conversation with journalists at Adiala jail, including reported corruption and economic difficulties.
The former premier used the cases of Hassan and Hussain Nawaz, the sons of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif while accusing the current government of wrongdoing. He said that Hasan had sold a house worth less for twice as much money and that the British National Crime Agency had highlighted the deal as suspicious.
“Where did Hassan Nawaz get the money to buy the house?” he inquired, adding that Nawaz’s two sons had been “found guilty in the Panama case.”
Stating, “The caretaker government, election commission, and establishment are all one,” Imran attacked the electoral process.
The founder of the PTI stated that all opposition parties as well as interested parties who were “victims of election rigging” will be present at the event on March 23. He said the JUI-F chairman Fazlur Rehman would be invited, but he was unsure if he would go.
In response to questions about economic issues, Imran stressed the critical role that Pakistanis living abroad play in stabilizing the economy and the importance of political stability to draw in foreign investment. “Only overseas Pakistanis can help us out.”
He expressed his concerns about the IMF program and said, “I told the IMF not to issue loans until there is political stability in the country.” He was opposed to the IMF executing another plan before the country had any kind of political stability.
Imran said the events of May 9, 2023, were ‘orchestrated’ to damage his party and that he was singled out for this reason after being found guilty in three separate cases in less than a week.
The PTI supremo claimed, “But their plan failed,” he expected his imprisonment to end in the next five to six months, at which point the government would “end”.
He claimed that the PPP’s abstention from cabinet was caused by doubts about the government’s ability to function.
To calm worries about a possible grudge against former president Arif Alvi, Imran made it clear that “there is no resentment towards him.” He praised Alvi’s attempts to resolve problems.
Worried about Pakistan’s tense ties to both Iran and Afghanistan, Imran declared, “The enemies of the country have benefited from the attack on Afghanistan.”
Talking of good relations with any Afghan government, he said, “There should be good relations with whatever government is in Afghanistan.”
He maintained, looking back at previous diplomatic attempts, “The Afghan government promised to solve the TTP problem during our time.” He also stated, “General Bajwa used to tell the corps commanders conference that I want to make General Faiz the army chief, although this was not even in my imagination.”
He said, “The general who conducted the dialogue between Afghanistan and the United States was removed at the behest of the Sharifs.” He accused the PDM government of “neglecting Afghanistan” and stated that the country’s tense ties with Iran and Afghanistan were a failure of foreign policy.
The founder of the PTI claimed that because he had to manage the province, K-P Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur asked PM Shehbaz for funding. Imran said, “He should have taken a picture with Shehbaz after they released funds,” but funds won’t be released since “no one is more unreliable than Sharifs.”
Nawaz was going to London soon, he said.
Imran clarified that none of their official accounts were posting against the army martyrs, stating that social media is a big forum.
He said some groups were spreading false information to drive a wedge between the army and him.
Imran emphasized the importance of the ISPR. He disagreed with its assignment of blame for the anti-army social media campaign to a particular political party, though. “The ISPR should not have made such statements.”
