Defence minister calls Aitzaz Ahsan ‘traitor’

PPP Punjab chapter passes resolution demanding suspension of his party membership

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE:

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Friday didn’t hesitate to call PPP leader Aitzaz Ahsan a “traitor”, saying some action will definitely be taken against him for dragging the army chief in the acquittal of Sharif family’s members from corruption and money laundering cases.

The defence minister while lashing out at Aitzaz said that it would not be a politically correct decision to give a new political life to someone who has already lost his political value when it was clear that all he wanted was some attention.

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The minister, however, added that as far as taking army chief’s name and involving him in the matter was concerned, “some action will definitely be taken”. “The way Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan has talked [about the army chief], we will have to put an end to these things,” Asif said, adding that there wasn’t anything bad other than criticising the army and its chief for political gains when the institution was protecting the homeland by rendering major sacrifices.

The PPP leader’s recent allegations raised many eyebrows when he alleged that the establishment helped the Sharif family, including PM Shehbaz Sharif, his son Hamza Shahbaz, and niece Maryam Nawaz, to get a clean chit from cases and the army chief rescued the Sharifs from conviction and “committed a big crime”. Aitzaz had further claimed that the cases against PM Shehbaz, ex-premier Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam were open-and-shut and their conviction was evident.

The defence minister’s statements came during a news conference, which was called by the prime minister but filled in by Asif at the eleventh hour as PM Shehbaz was busy attending the National Security Committee meeting. In the news conference, Asif flanked by Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, among others, said that certain quarters raised questions on the acquittal of PM Shehbaz, his son Hamza and niece but they were baseless.

Read PTI terms Maryam’s acquittal as ‘NRO2’

Referring to Aitzaz, Asif said that the PPP leader was the first one who had abandoned PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto after becoming an MPA in a “rigged election” in 1977. “He [Aitzaz] has been a traitor since then,” Asif said, adding that it was his real face. Asif said PM Shehbaz, Nawaz, his daughter and other PML-N leaders have demonstrated that they respect judiciary, adding that their acquittal was not a result of any deal.

“To say that someone made phone call is a result of a man’s personal frustration,” Asif said.

Further, the Pakistan Peoples Party Lahore Chapter leadership on Friday passed a resolution against Aitzaz, demanding the Central Executive Committee to suspend his basic party membership.

The resolution was moved in the form of a letter jointly authored by two zonal presidents of Lahore that was read out before the attendees of the meeting. It was contended in the resolution that the Punjab chapter demanded Aitzaz’s basic membership be suspended forthwith for supporting Imran’s politics and opposing the PPP’s policies.

Acting Central President Punjab Rana Farooq told the media after the meeting that they would hold a protest outside Aitzaz's house if his party membership was not suspended promptly.

He said that he had once stripped Aitzaz naked back in 1977 when he was the Peoples Students Federation president and Aitzaz had then left the party and it seems to be in his destiny to do it again.

Despite several attempts, the general and information secretaries were unavailable for comments.