Aleema Khan, the sister of former prime minister Imran Khan, disclosed on Wednesday that her brother had received a message from General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa, the then Chief of Army Staff (COAS), offering Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly in exchange for Imran ceasing his protests, which had started following his removal from office.
After being dismissed from office in April of last year, Imran initiated a nationwide protest, making history as the only prime minister of Pakistan to be removed through a no-trust vote.
Khan’s party, which ruled the nation for more than three and a half years, battled to hold onto power as its friends deserted them and sided with the opposition parties that had formed an alliance to overthrow the PTI administration.
The former head of the PTI asserted—contrary to his previous position in which he held the United States accountable for his removal—that the plot to overthrow his administration was conceived in Pakistan.
“When all economic indicators were showing positive trends, former army chief general Qamar Javed Bajwa conspired against an elected government in collaboration with the PDM [Pakistan Democratic Movement] parties,” he had stated.
“In August 2022, General Bajwa approached me with an offer that if PTI ceased protesting against regime-change, a two-thirds majority for the party will be ensured in the National Assembly,” Aleema Khan told the media following her meeting with Imran Khan at Adiala Jail.
Aleema Khan claims that Imran Khan declared, “We are free, and I will bow before no one but God, even though our parents were born in a slave nation. In a free nation, it is preferable for us to face death rather than to submit to slavery.”
Aleema Khan went on to emphasize the difficulties, saying that just three or four jailed journalists receive permission each day. “Adiala jail is not holding an open trial.” The accusations made against Imran are baseless,” she continued.
She went on to add that every time Imran is granted bail in a previous case, he becomes involved in a new one and that this is all part of a plot to put the former prime minister behind bars.
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