ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding chairman Imran Khan on Monday said the Shehbaz Sharif-led government wanted to get rid of PTI through the army.

Talking to mediapersons at Adiala Jail after the hearing of the new Toshakhana case against him and his wife Bushra Bibi, he said the government is trying to pit the army and the PTI against each other.

He said the government has launched a crackdown against the social media team and arrested 75-year-old cancer patient, Raoof Hasan. “Those who are investigating the matter related to social media are themselves the product of Form 47 and are trying to pit PTI and the army against each other,” he said.

Khan demanded constitution of a judicial commission for probe into the matters related to social media. “The government is afraid of PTI, they want PTI to be abolished through the army”, he said, adding that after the current financial year’s budget, the government has lost its credibility.

About his statement that he had asked his party to stage a peaceful protest outside the General Headquarters (GHQ), in the event of his arrest, he said that his statement was portrayed in a way that I admitted or confessed to May 9 violence. I did three Vlogs regarding peaceful protest outside GHQ, he said, adding that he also told the police regarding peaceful protest outside GHQ during the investigation.

He said that he would file a case against the Rangers that how a former prime minister was abducted from the premises of Islamabad High Court (IHC). “Who had ordered the Rangers to arrest me and who had ordered them to beat me with sticks,” he said.

Earlier, Accountability Court judge Muhammad Ali Warraich, while hearing the new Toshakhana case, extended the physical remand of Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi for another 10 days.

The court also ordered the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to produce both the accused in August with the progress report of the investigation.

Both Khan and his wife were produced before the court after the expiry of their previous physical remand.

NAB Deputy Prosecutor General Sardar Muzaffar Abbasi requested the court to further extend the physical remand of Khan and his wife for another 14 days.

During the hearing, Khan and Abbasi exchanged harsh words with each other when Khan stated that NAB’s people are unscrupulous, pay them and get anything that you want. Abbasi got angered over Khan’s statement and stated “don’t get personal with me and stay to the case.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024