PML-N hits back at govt over ‘shoddy’ anti-state trends report

Govt declared its opponents anti-state for exposing its incompetence, says former PM Abbasi

Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) has termed the ‘Anti-State Trends’ report released by the PTI-led government earlier this week as “shoddy, misleading and based on assumptions”.

PML-N senior leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, while addressing a press conference flanked by other party leaders in Islamabad on Friday, said that the PTI government had declared its opponents ‘anti-state’ in the report for exposing its incompetence.

Earlier this week, National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf while referring to "Deep Analytics Report" on "Anti-State Trends" said that many Indian and Afghan social media accounts were involved in maligning Pakistan.

Anti-State Trends Deep Analytics Report (2019 to 2021)

Download full report here: https://t.co/W9LPdM48LO pic.twitter.com/NUr0tZIvnS

— Digital Media Wing Pakistan (@PakistanDMW) August 11, 2021

Moeed, addressing a news conference alongside Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, had said that many trends created against Pakistan on Twitter and other social media platforms were by bots and many in Pakistan retweeted them and became part of propaganda.

Reacting to the NSA’s claims, Abbasi in today’s presser said political opponents are being labelled as anti-state and traitors merely for criticising incompetence of the government.

Also read: Indian, Afghan social media accounts involved in anti-Pakistan propaganda: NSA

While casting doubts on the report, Abbasi said the information ministry acquired data from Canadian company and they also did not analyse the content of the tweets.

“They [government] do not even know that the tweets mentioned in the report were against or in favour of Pakistan,” he added.

The former PML-N premier lashed out at the ruling PTI for accusing opposition parties of maintaining links with hostile agencies. He said such reports are being published to divert the public’s attention from real issues like prevailing situation in Afghanistan.

“In every martial law era, political parties were called enemies of the state... the so-called democratic government is also making similar allegations,” Abbasi added.

Quoting a local TV channel, Abbasi said the Canadian firm had denied selling any data to the Pakistani government.

He said Reham Khan, former wife of Prime Minister Imran Khan, PPP’s Farhatullah Babar, ANP’s Bushra Gohar and many other opposition lawmakers were declared as “anti-state elements” by this ‘selected government’.