Saqib Nisar was PTI’s agent, not CJP: PM

LONDON: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said that former Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar was an agent of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and he worked as an activist and an agent of PTI during his tenure as the CJP.

Shehbaz Sharif met former PM Nawaz Sharif in London after attending the coronation of King Charles and spoke to the media after the meeting.

The PM said that Saqib Nisar had played a key role in the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif on completely baseless and false allegations and ran a vindictive campaign against the PMLN in order to bring Imran Khan into power through a rigged election he presided over.

Shehbaz Sharif said Saqib Nisar used suo motu notices and he would use suo motu for his personal political interests and not for the public interest.

Prime Minister Sharif said that the audio leak of the former CJP’s son Najam Saqib shows that there was a conspiracy to bring Imran to power in which Saqib Nisar was involved.

The premier said the House Committee had called Saqib Nisar and his son Najam Saqib to answer questions about their involvement in the sale of tickets for Rs120 million.

Shehbaz Sharif said that elections in the country will take place on the same day and parliament will assert its supremacy at all costs.

The premier said, “Elections will happen in one day. In Punjab, in the past, there was a wrong impression that it is the big brother of the provinces. All provinces are equal. Only doing an election in Punjab is not in Pakistan’s interest.” The PM said, “Parliament’s constitutional rights will be protected, and Parliament has one voice on this matter. There is no doubt that Parliament within its limits will assert its authority. The whole Parliament stands united. Parliament will get itself asserted within its legal remit.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif slammed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for creating “controversy” around Pakistan’s participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) moot in India, saying for the Imran Khan-led party ‘everything’ is a ‘plaything.’

“It is deeply troubling how the PTI tried to generate a controversy around Pakistan’s participation in the SCO’s meeting in India,” tweeted PM Shehbaz a day after Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari returned from India.

However, the PM said that it was not “surprising” as his predecessor Imran Khan “had no qualms about imperiling the country’s vital foreign policy interests in the past”. “This is what they did when they were in power. For the PTI, everything including the conduct of interstate relations is a plaything,” tweeted the premier, reported Geo News.

Foreign Minister Bhutto-Zardari visited the Indian city of Goa to attend the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers (CFMs) meeting.

The visit was hailed by former diplomats, foreign policy analysts, scholars and experts as it marked the first time in more than a decade that a Pakistan foreign minister had visited the neighbouring country.

However, the opposition PTI was not very welcoming to the idea of a Pakistani foreign minister visiting India and was critical of Bilawal’s actions during his trip.

Reacting to the PM’s tweet, PTI leader Andleeb Abbas termed the prime minister’s tweet “ironic”. “Washington Post expose of Discord Leaks revealed his dangerous tilt towards US in the war between Ukraine and Russia was revealed imperiling relations with China and Russia. No denial of this leak. Foreign policy Mr PM is not just 7 day vacation in UK on taxpayers’ expense,” said Abbas.

When the visit was announced, Senior Vice-President of PTI Fawad Chaudhry opposed the move and tweeted, “strongly condemn FM visit of Goa, participation would have been possible on video but problem is you people in love of Modi are ready to disregard atrocities committed by Modi Janta in Kashmir and hardships Muslims of India and minorities to make Modi Janta happy. Pak Foreign policy is dead by all definitions of the word”.

When journalists tweeted that Foreign Minister Bilawal and his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar exchanged pleasantries, former human rights minister and PTI leader Shireen Mazari questioned the visit.

“PDM/handlers loyalists trying to retrieve some dignity for imported FM who was given a slap on the face by India refusing a bilateral meeting with his counterpart. So, his being seated on FMs table and Indian host shaking his hand was breaking news and sole achievement (although no picture)! Should he have been made to sit alone?” asked Mazari.

Mazari also slammed foreign minister Bilawal for the gestures when he met his Indian counterpart ahead of the start of the SCO moot. “The real story is in this picture where Indian counterpart and host doesn’t put his hand out to shake Bilawal’s hand but does Namaste as does Bilawal,” tweeted Mazari. The PTI leader said “signaling is important in diplomacy” especially when both are hostile states. She claimed that Bilawal signalled “appeasement” with the gesture.