Imran breaks silence of botched assassination attempt

PTI chief claims he knew about the plot; names three suspects; asks supporters to continue protests

KARACHI:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan asked his supporters on Friday to continue protesting against the assassination attempt on him until those who plotted the attack resigned from their positions.

In a video message from the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital (SKMCH), Imran Khan said he knew beforehand about the plot to kill him either in Wazirabad or in Gujarat.

Imran sustained bullet wounds to his leg after a gunman opened fires on his container, as he led the PTI’s ‘Haqeeqi Azadi March’ in Wazirabad on Thursday. One person died in the incident, while several PTI leaders were injured.

Immediately after the shooting, Imran was taken to the SKMCH in Lahore. Dr Faisal Sultan, the chief executive officer of the hospital, said that the PTI chief was hit by four bullets to his leg.

Breaking his silence in his video address, the PTI chairman alleged that three people – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and a senior military officer, were behind the botched assassination attempt on his life.

He asked his party workers and supporters to continue protesting against the assassination attempt until three “accused” resigned. He said the resignations of the three, who “controlled all agencies”, was necessary for an impartial probe.

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“Never compromise on your independence. Protest is your right,” he said, urging his supporters to “fully participate” in the protest to demand the resignation of the three “suspects”.

“I will take to the streets immediately after recovering and will give a call for [march towards] Islamabad,” the PTI chairman said. He also asked the army chief to make the senior military official concerned resign.

Imran also provided details of the attack on him in Wazirabad, saying that there were two shooters. “I was on the container when a "burst of bullets" was directed at me. I got shot in the leg and fell down,” he said.

“Then a second burst came, there were two people," he said, adding if the two burst were synchronised, he would not have survived. He also said that one suspect had been arrested, who claimed to be an extremist.

“He is not an extremist,” the former prime minister said. “There was a plan behind the attempt [and] we will uncover it." He also said that he had information that “the script of religious extremism” would be used.

Imran said that the same military official was also behind the custodial torture of senior PTI leaders Shehbaz Gill and Senator Azam Swati. It was incumbent upon the army chief to take action against the “black sheep”.

Imran warned that the country’s largest political party was being pushed against the wall, while attempts were made to assassinate its leader. “We have not learned anything from the past, like the East Pakistan tragedy,” he said.

Giving the reasons behind the assassination attempt, Imran said that the “conspirators” decided to kill him because of the massive participation of the people in the long march.

However, he added that “establishment is not aware of the ground realities”, adding: “Despite knowing that the people are not ready to accept this imported government, they [establishment] are bent upon enforcing their decision.”

He alleged that the PTI workers and supporters were tortured and intimidated during the last long march because the establishment had anticipated that the party would “vanish” through such tactics. The military official in question had “promised his seniors” that he would deal with the PTI long march.

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“Three people made a plan, they made a plan when they realised that the crowd in the long march is getting large. They wanted to blame my murder on religious fanatics,” he alleged.

During the last Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government, Imran continued, Sana killed people in Model Town to stop the long march. Shehbaz Sharif killed almost 900 people in fake encounters in 1990s, he added.

With such measures, the PTI chief questioned, “where is Pakistan heading. Nations die when they give up on their ideology. There is no justice here,” he said, adding investigation into his assassination attempt was not possible until the three accused resigned.

“Please save the country chief justice sahib,” he implored the Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial. He added that attempts were being made to kill a leader of “only federal party”, which could unite the country.

“The East Pakistan would not have disintegrated if the military could keep the country united,” Imran said, adding that only political parties could ensure unity in the country.

Imran said establishment was not ready to accept the masses’ decision “as they clearly indicated through by-polls that they would not accept the coalition government led by PML-N”.

Imran said the ‘imported government’ tried to disband his party in the prohibited funding case and he was disqualified in the Toshakhana reference “on the orders of [PML-N supremo] Nawaz Sharif to ensure level-playing field”.

“Musharraf’s martial law was better than what is happening today… it was a liberal era but today journalists are being picked up and tortured for speaking in favour of PTI.”