Pakistan has become a banana republic: Imran Khan

Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan said on Wednesday that the country has become a banana republic where there is no rule of law, Aaj News reported.

“No nation can progress until the rule of law prevails for everyone. This ‘powerful mafia’ is taking the country to the point of no return,” he said while addressing a press conference in Lahore after the arrest of his party’s leader Fawad Chaudhry earlier this morning.

“No one should be above the law,” he said. “Underdeveloped nations all over the world have low adherence to the law.”

He said the country’s economy was on the right track during his government, but things deteriorated after the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government took over.

“Flour was available at Rs65/kg, electricity, gas and petrol were available at a low price. Then they forced a ‘regime change’ and suddenly, inflation skyrocketed. Everything has gone out of the common man’s approach,” Imran said.

He called on the judiciary and the lawyer’s community to stand against injustice and lawlessness.

Imran also urged the court to take notice of the caretaker setup appointed by the ECP, saying Mohsin Naqvi was only appointed the chief minister to make the elections controversial.

“We gave names of most neutral people who we thought should be acceptable to the opposition. However, the ECP, influenced by the PDM government, appointed Naqvi, who everybody knows, had a key role in the ‘regime change’.”

He asked the ECP to explain on what grounds it rejected three other names, and appointed Naqvi.

“The first thing he [Mohsin Naqvi] did was to appoint all officers involved in the May 25 oppression against our party,” he said, asking the ECP and the Supreme Court if this was the definition of “neutral umpires” and free and fair elections.

The PTI chief asked the Supreme Court to take notice of the issue and ensure the protection of the fundamental rights of the people, saying he would, otherwise, have no option but to take to the streets.

Speaking about the disintegration of the joint investigation team (JIT) probing the assassination attempt on him in Wazirabad, he said that the video of the shooter was recorded at the CTD station where four to five ‘unidentified’ people were present.

The former premier claimed that the JIT members were pressurised because it would have established the conspiracy to assassinate him.

Imran said the governors of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have not announced dates for the elections which was a violation of the Constitution according to which polls should be held within three months.

The PTI chief also urged the people of the country to take to the streets against this regime, saying “it would be too late if you don’t stand for your rights today”.

Imran’s presser comes hours after his party’s senior leader Fawad Chaudhry was arrested early Wednesday morning from his residence for remarks made against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). He was brought to Lahore’s Cantt where the judicial magistrate granted police his transit remand to Islamabad.

But later, the LHC directed the police to produce the politician in Lahore.

Hearing a petition about Fawad’s arrest, the LHC summoned the Inspector Generals (IGs) of Punjab and Islamabad police and adjourned the hearing till 6 pm this evening.

Meanwhile, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the PTI leader was arrested for threatening the officials of a state institution, urging PTI leadership “not to politicise the arrest” as no political party was part of the case.

Addressing a presser, Marriyum said the case against Fawad was not filed by any political party, but the ECP.

“Fawad threatened to hold ECP officials accountable for merely doing their job,” she said, stressing that PTI leadership has threatened every state institution for months.