It won’t be in govt control if courts bar Imran from polls: Kakar

ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has said it will not be in the interim government’s control if Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan is legally barred from contesting the upcoming polls by courts.

In an interview with the BBC during his visit to London, the premier said: “The fate of Imran Khan is not final as yet. There are judicial remedies available to him… And if all options are utilised judicially, then yes, there is a possibility that he may legally be barred from that process which is beyond the control of the caretaker government.”

To a question regarding the PMLN supremo Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif, he reiterated that if any individual was barred from the elections, it would not be due to an executive decision as that could only be through judicial outcome. He said that being the caretaker prime minister, he could not undo judicial outcomes. Asked whether Nawaz would be arrested on his return from London, Kakar said the law-enforcement agencies would have to deliberate whether he had a protective bail or any other legal remedies available.

He said the PTI as a political party was not barred from participating in the elections. “

The law should take its course as he went abroad on a court order. However, he said he did not foresee any agitation on Nawaz’s arrest as instead of indulging in agitation, the PMLN leadership would prefer to take part in the elections.

About his government’s economic priorities, he said they had cracked down on illegal trade of currency and hoarding. The government will also go for the privatization of state-owned entities like Steel Mills, PIA and Discos.

Meanwhile, the PTI spokesman on Saturday grilled caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar for his “opt-repeated shameful analogies and senseless statements” not only causing further divisions in the country but also becoming a source of distorting Pakistan’s image globally.

He referred to the PM’s remarks that he was seeing the current environment in the country as a contest between ‘Imran Khan and the state’ and the issue of enforced disappearances in Balochistan was like that of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

The PTI spokesman called Kakar’s statements as shameful examples of ignorance, misunderstanding, stupidity and irresponsibility. He warned that the caretaker PM, through his stupid and senseless rhetoric, was further igniting the internal crisis and causing an irreparable damage to Pakistan’s image in the world.