Paying rich tributes to the apex court judges and six members of the JIT, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said that through their verdict and investigation in Panama leaks case, the five-judge bench laid the foundation of 'New Pakistan'.
Addressing a mammoth rally at Parade Ground in connection with the party's 'thanksgiving day' celebrations after the ouster of Nawaz Sharif, jubilant Khan accompanied by the party's senior leadership, said that without the fair probe by the joint investigation team (JIT), trial of the Sharifs could not have been possible.
He said that he had no words to pay tributes for the bravery of the apex court judges for what they have done against the mafias, adding the six-member JIT equally deserved equal appreciation as they fought against mafias despite intimidation and offer of billions of rupees bribe.
"I salute the SC and its judges as you people laid the foundation of a 'New Pakistan', which was the dream of the PTI. There was disappointment among my workers and all opposition political parties when I called off my November 2, 2017 [anti-government] protest, saying courts don't do justice, but our top judiciary proved them all wrong by giving a historic verdict," he maintained.
He dubbed the interim prime minister nominee as 'LNG-Abbasi' [Shahid Khaqan Abbasi] and alerted him to get ready along with his successor Shahbaz Sharif to be ready to face the music as his party is ready to chase them in corruption cases. The PTI chairman did not spare Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, and said that the next turn is his while JUI-F chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman will also be tracked down for his alleged corruption. He clarified that he has no enmity with Sharif family as it is fight against the menace of corruption which has shaken the very foundation of the country.
Khan hit hard at AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider for his controversial statement, saying the people of Kashmir are being killed by Indian troops but a 'coward PM' is speaking the language of Modi. He appealed the people of AJK to hold protest outside his home and make him accountable.
If voted to power, the PTI chairman promised to introduce reforms which can change the destiny of the country, adding the match is yet to be won, but people have already won the match for a new Pakistan. He claimed that overseas Pakistanis are overjoyed over the apex court decision as there everybody is equal before the law. The accountability will start from the prime minister and the ministers, and the top anti-graft body will not spare any corrupt person, he added.
"When I come to power, the NAB will not wait for the orders of the prime minister to catch the thief. I guarantee that I will not allow anybody to plunder national wealth and commit corruption. I will empower NAB, FBR and FIA, and all other institutions to tighten noose around the corrupt and tax evader," he declared.
He also promised to bring down the expenditures of the PM, governor houses, besides putting a cut on foreign trips of foreign dignitaries. "All the governor houses in all four provinces will be converted into parks for women, while Nathiagali and Murree governor houses will be turned into hotels," he added. He said that he would not let the Pakistanis to bow down before any foreign country, and would show the opponents by collecting money from expatriate Pakistanis. The need to put the country on the right track is to streamline the state institutions, he added.
He expressed hope that overseas Pakistanis will make huge investments in the country, like this process has started in KP, where the PTI is in power. The thing which needs to be done is to correct the outdated, corrupt system that will usher in a new era for the country. Another promise which he made with the nation would be, all appointments will be on merit, and even the class IV positions will be filled on merit. "Democracy and merit are interlinked, so all the jobs will be filled through NTS system," he said.
The PTI chairman questioned if there had been any democracy in PML-N, there could have been someone else instead of Shahbaz Sharif, which shows it is dynasty. "You talk of democracy, but Nawaz Sharif finds no one except his own brother for the slot of prime minister," he lamented.
About the cases pending against him in court, he said that if he is proved guilty even in a single case, he would step down. He said that Yasmeen Rashid of PTI will jump into the fray against Shahbaz Sharif, and give him a humiliating defeat. Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rasheed lambasted Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, the PML-N candidate for interim prime minister, for his alleged billions of rupees corruption in LNG deal with Qatar.
He also said that he would file a petition against Khaqan Abbasi for his alleged corruption in LNG deal, while the Shahbaz Sharif will also face corruption reference as his name already surfaced in Hudaibia papers Mills case.
Sheikh also did not spare his arch rival former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, and reminded him that his plan to send him home proved wrong, as it was Nawaz Sharif who was sent packing, which he had already predicted for him. The AML chief also criticised the AJK prime minister and Gilgit-Baltistan chief minister for their controversial statements about Kashmir issue in wake of Sharif's disqualification, and said both the leaders would be booted out, as there would be no compromise on Kashmir cause.
Sheikh was all praise for the apex court and their six members joint investigation team (JIT) for their historic verdict and contribution in exposing the corrupt mafias led by Sharifs which, Sheikh contended robbed the nations for three decades. He also discredited Sharif for his claim on China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that it was a gift to him from the Chinese president, saying the project was initiated during the government of former president General Pervez Musharraf. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said that Nawaz Sharif had no idea that his departure from country's politics could end forever like this, adding Sharif's disqualification was a writing on the wall as exploited the poor in the name of so-called development.
"Imran is the leader who helped us in getting rid of the plunderers. I'm sure the day is not far when PTI will emerge as victorious in next general elections," he added.
PTI Secretary General Jahangir Tareen fixed his guns at Shahbaz Sharif to clear himself from Model town massacre, adding the said commission's report of the Model Town tragedy must be made public. "Nawaz Sharif must know that he was booted out for lying as he failed to prove the money trail, and all the evidence which he brought from Qatar etc, proved to be fake due to which you [Sharif] have faced disqualification," he added.
PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that people want a corruption-free Pakistan, where people can have a sigh of relief as they had had enough during the last several years due to status quo and corrupt people. He was optimistic about the cases pending before the apex court against Imran Khan and Jahangir Tareen, saying there is a huge difference between cases against Sharifs and his party leaders. He also lauded the SC verdict and contribution of the six-member JIT led by Wajid Zia that probed the offshore assets of Sharif family.