Imran Khan wants former COAS Bajwa to face court martial

LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan said on Friday he felt that Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Asim Munir was treating him like an enemy.

“The establishment does not understand what politics is,” he said while speaking to journalists here at his residence, just days after his return from Islamabad where he secured bail in three cases.

He said that he had “no fight with the establishment” and that he was willing to talk to them for the betterment of the country.

“However, if anyone thinks I will bow down to them, that cannot happen. I can’t help it if no one is interested in talking,” he explained.

About the corruption cases against him, the former prime minister said: “The cases of corruption against my wife and me cannot be proved,” adding that if the COAS doubted his integrity so much, he should look into it personally and he would find that “I am, indeed, innocent of any corruption [charges]”.

Khan also maintained that it was very important for the country’s army to be strong.

Imran Khan accused General (retd) Qamar Jawed Bajwa of “backstabbing” him, and asserted that the former army chief should be court-martialled. He complained that General (retd) Bajwa had spoken against Moscow right after he had gone there for a visit following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Khan also spoke about the upcoming general election and said: “We [PTI] will win the election despite Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) umpires.”

He declared that overseas Pakistanis stand with his party and they would keep supporting it. In response to a query regarding his recent trip to Islamabad when he was due to appear in four courts, Khan said that the decision to travel to the Capital by road, instead of air, was made late at night. “There was news that they wanted to arrest me from the airport and take me to Balochistan.” The PTI chief expressed concerns that his life was still in danger and said that “those who should protect” him were instead putting him in danger. He also said that going to jail would earn the party more votes. Khan also said that women, who had been elected on reserved seats, also wanted to be considered as candidates for the post of the Punjab chief minister. “If the decision for the post is made now, there will be a massacre,” Khan laughed.