Ministers censure Sharif for ‘defaming’ army
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Ministers on Saturday launched a scathing attack on former premier Nawaz Sharif, accusing him of defaming the military and playing dirty politics to create political instability in the country.
They stepped up their criticism of PML-N supreme leader a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan held a meeting with PTI members and spokespersons to chalk out a strategy to counter the opposition’s anti-government movement.
Information Minister Shibli Faraz said Sharif should not punish Pakistan for being stripped away from power.
“Sharif changes his ideology like changing weather. Now that he is not in power, he has become a revolutionary. When he was in power, he had become a dictator,” the minister tweeted.
Addressing a news conference in Lahore, Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid said Prime Minister Imran Khan had made a “wrong decision” by allowing TV channels to broadcast former premier Nawaz Sharif’s fiery speech at the opposition parties’ confab last month.
“Nawaz Sharif has declared a war against the Pakistan Army, which is the greatest army in the world,” the minister, who is known for setting off a political buzz with his unconventional statements, claimed while addressing a news conference in Lahore.
“A man [Nawaz], who once was nurtured in the military’s nursery himself, is now speaking against it [army],” he added, criticising the PML-N supreme leader for his anti-establishment stance.
“If I were in his [PM Imran] place, I would have never allowed Nawaz’s speech to be aired. The prime minister made a wrong decision.”
Rashid further maintained that the PML-N had remained silent for one year and 10 months because it was “bargaining” for a deal.
He added that several people were involved in these negotiations and the PML-N had even sought the help of brotherly Islamic countries to strike a pact.
The minister reiterated that an “S” faction would break away from the PML-N. “A Muslim League member can never be against the army,” he added.
Speaking about the opposition parties’ plan to send the PTI-led government packing under the banner of their newly formed alliance Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), Rashid said their protest movement was driven by the fear that PTI would take the majority in Senate after its elections in March.
The minister challenged the opposition parties to resign from the assemblies, saying that the government was ready to hold by-polls. “They will be wiped out wherever by-elections are held.”
He also doubted that the PPP, which was a part of the alliance, would resign from the assemblies as it would not risk losing its government in Sindh.
Rashid further claimed that the opposition parties were using JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman for the last two years. “He [Fazl] should not allow himself to be used by other opposition parties this time.”
Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar also hit out at Sharif, alleging that the former premier wanted to create political instability in the country. Addressing a news conference, he said despite having evidence, Sharif did not utter a word to condemn the subversive activities of Indian spy Commander Kulbhushan Jadhav in Pakistan.
“Nawaz Sharif has damaged the repute of state institutions,” he added.
Sarwar said the government was taking all possible steps to bring Sharif back.
“Nawaz Sharif and his family are playing dirty politics.”
The minister said Sharif’s medical board should be challenged and its report should be investigated. “No matter what the opposition does, they will not get an NRO.”
The aviation minister said there was no threat to the government and the opposition’s protests would not hinder the development of the country.
He advised PML-N activists and supporters to avoid supporting a person who was playing in the hands of the enemy. He maintained that MQM leaders and activists had dissociated themselves from the party’s founder Altaf Hussain when started speaking against the country.
Speaking at a ceremony in Lahore, Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood claimed that the PML-N wanted the government to give an NRO to Sharif. “The government faces no threat from the opposition parties,” he added.
“Rejected political elements want to cover up their corruption through negative politics.”
Addressing ceremonies in Nowshera Kalan and Aman Gardh, Defence Minister Pervez Khattak said the opposition’s tirade against state institutions would only provide the country’s enemies an opportunity to achieve their nefarious designs.
He said religious and political entities should join hands to establish peace in the region and support Kashmiris in their struggle for self-determination.
PM’s Special Assistant on Political Communication Shahbaz Gill said the convicted PML-N supreme leader had become a security threat as his diatribe against national institutions could dent the country.
“Nawaz Sharif has targeted state institutions with mala fide intentions and leaked sensitive information during the past week,” Gill said during a press conference at the PID Regional Office in Lahore.
“I am not calling Nawaz a traitor, but he is a greedy businessman, who always becomes a RAW [Indian secret agency Research and Analysis Wing] agent for monetary gains,” he added.
The PM’s aide said the former PM, in his recent virtual speeches, had peddled Indian propaganda against Pakistan to destabilise the country.
“Politicians should not blame the military for their mistakes if they had failed to deliver. The army has not interfered in the political working of the PTI government led by PM Imran Khan.”
Sharif broke his long silence during a PPP-hosted all parties conference on September 20, taking his ‘vote ko izzat do’ mantra to the next level by declaring that the opposition was not up against PM Imran but those who had brought him into power in the 2018 elections.
Later while addressing party leaders and activists, he accused state institutions of meddling into political and parliamentary affairs.