Imran seeks input on launching ‘Jail Bharo’ movement

LAHORE:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has sought opinion from his team of legal and constitutional experts on his ‘Jail Bharo’ (fill prison) movement.

The PTI sources disclosed that the party was deliberating on legal and constitutional options before launching the movement after which party chairman would announce his course of action and party leaders and workers would present themselves for arrest.

Meanwhile, speaking to the representatives of foreign media on Tuesday, Imran said he strongly believed that the next elections would be rigged; “the officials involved in atrocities committed against the PTI workers on May 25 are being posted in Punjab”.

He pointed out that it was clear in the Constitution that elections should be held within 90 days of the dissolution of assemblies. He was critical of the caretaker governments, saying that he had never seen such reprisals in the history of the country, adding that the policy of former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa was continuing. “In the absence of rule of law, the country cannot move forward.”

He said that the establishment was not a one-man show, adding that a “new army chief brings his own policy”. He claimed that on the insistence of former army chief Qamar, the services of former ambassador to the US Hussain Haqqani and others were hired; “these people were used to lobby against me in America”.

He admitted that he committed a mistake by giving Qamar an extension; “in fact it was a mistake so big that it was a blunder”.

He averred that for the first time, the nation did not accept the regime change operation. He blamed the coalition government for the economic meltdown, holding it responsible for the devaluation of the rupee and escalation in the prices of petrol and other things.

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On the Toshakhana case, the PTI chief said that the government had been trapped after the court asked for the Toshakhana details and till date it had not been able to provide any.

He denied any contacts with PML-N Quaid and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, saying: “He wants me to be disqualified.”

Defending his recent announcement of launching the ‘jail bharo’ movement, he said that it was one way of staging a peaceful protest.

Imran believed that the current Taliban government was not against Pakistan; “however, we cannot afford terrorism in the country”.

The PTI chief claimed that his party, with an effective strategy, had completely controlled terrorism in its time. “In order to remedy terrorism, effective practical measures are needed beyond the All-Party Conference as the PTI had made the police better and more active in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.”

He said that his government had left reserves of $16 billion, which were now around $3 billion.

In the PTI’s era, he said, the Sensitive Price Index had reached 16% while today it was almost 40%.

Imran said that the imported government had managed to get forgiven all corruption cases against it.