Estranged PTI leader warns Imran Khan against appointment of new army chief

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Amid reports of Prime Minister Imran Khan appointing a new army chief, estranged Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MNA Dr Aamir Liaquat Hussain has warned the premier against doing so saying it would lead to a strong reaction from all over the country, reported local media.

Saying that he had received reports that Imran Khan was going to appoint a new army chief, Liaquat said it would prove disastrous and he would be the strongest voice against any such move, the Dawn newspaper reported citing a video posted by the estranged PTI MNA on his Twitter handle.

“There are reports that you are going to make another move, which you must not make. You are going to appoint a new army chief. Please don’t do this. I would be the strongest voice against any such move,” the media outlet quoted him as saying.

“General Bajwa and whole institution is respectable. The services of General Bajwa from Balochistan Regiment to (the office of) army chief are unforgettable. And talking about army chief is not undemocratic. We have voted for him (extension of his services),” he added.

The PTI leader also advised the premier to let people decide for themselves in the upcoming no-confidence resolution as those who were loyal to him would not leave him despite all pressure and offers from the opposition, according to the media outlet.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Army’s top brass, led by General Qamar Javed Bajwa, has reportedly asked Imran Khan to resign after the conference of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) scheduled for this month.

Pakistan media reports stated that the decision to oust Khan was taken by General Bajwa and three other senior Lt. Generals in a meeting which took place after Bajwa and the country’s spymaster Lieutenant General Nadeem Anjum met Imran Khan.

It was reported that all four military leaders decided not to give any escape route to Imran Khan.

Notably, the fissures between Imran Khan and the Army establishment became visible when the former in his profanity-laced speech on March 11 had rebuffed Army Chief Bajwa’s advice to not use derogatory remarks against Opposition leaders.

Further, Imran Khan’s remarks on “neutrality” also indicated this rift. “There’s nothing called neutrality in politics, only animals stay neutral,” he had said a day after the military’s spokesperson clarified that the Army had nothing to do with politics, calling for an end to speculation regarding its role in political affairs. (ANI)