Imran, Asif, Qureshi, Shujaat, Elahi assail PPP chief’s remarks

ISLAMABAD: The Chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, on Wednesday condemned the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Asif Ali Zardari’s tirade against the army, saying national institutions must not be destroyed in order to cover up one’s corruption.
Talking to media persons here, Imran Khan recalled that during the tenure of the previous government when the PPP rulers were facing a difficult time, Nawaz Sharif supported Asif Zardari and they would team up again to hide their corruption. “A deal is under way between the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and PPP,” he alleged.
Imran noted that it was not the army but Nawaz who had put Zardari behind bars. He again claimed that 2015 was the election year.
The PTI chief said his party was eagerly awaiting the findings of the judicial commission on the 2013 elections and believed that the electoral process could be rectified by this forum, hoping the nation would be free of rigging and unscrupulous elements in the next elections.
The PTI chairman contended that when they were demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif over rigging in the 2013 polls, political parties agitating in
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had adopted a stance against the PM’s resignation. “Today, they themselves are asking for the resignation of the provincial government for alleged rigging in the recently-held local bodies polls.” He said if they wanted the resignation of the PTI-led provincial government, then the federal government would also have to bow out.
Agencies add: PTI’s Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi has expressed shock over Zardari’s fiery speech.
Speaking to journalists outside the Parliament House, Qureshi asked why the need for such a harsh stance from the PPP leader, who is usually calm and composed, arose. He asked the former president why he didn’t expose those who trampled democracy during his five-year rule and failed to take action in the NLC scam.
Qureshi told journalists that certain corrupt politicians had ruined the country by plundering the national wealth. He supported accountability but emphasised that it should be within the ambit of law.
The PTI leader emphasised times had changed and if someone thinks another era like Zia’s might return, they are mistaken. He added that there is no clash between the institutions, adding that there is no attack under way on democracy and it was wrong to create such an impression.
Qureshi urged the government to unveil the DG Rangers report on corruption in Karachi that included the names of 24 persons. “Politically stable and peaceful Pakistan is the need of the hour,” he added.
He cautioned that such statements are inappropriate at a time when the situation at the western and eastern borders is very sensitive and the armed forces are giving sacrifices of their lives for the defence of the country.
Meanwhile, Minister of Defence Khawaja Muhammad Asif said the Pakistan Army was making history by combating terrorists.Talking to a news channel, he said Rangers were called into Karachi as per the law and the Constitution and they had done appropriate work to fix the law and order situation in the city. The minister said it was a reality that mismanagement and corruption were rife in Karachi. However, he said governor’s rule was not being imposed there. He also condemned the speech of Asif Ali Zardari.
Replying to a question, the minister said he would not apologise to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) over his statement in parliament.Meanwhile, the PML-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and senior leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi have reiterated their full support to the Pakistan Army and warned that no step to hurt the honour of the army will be tolerated.
They said local bodies elections should be fair, anti-farmer policies should be ended and instead they should be provided maximum incentives and facilities. They were addressing a meeting of central and provincial party leaders in Lahore on Wednesday.
Shujaat said affairs cannot go on like this in the prevailing situation. Pervaiz Elahi in his address said he was in contact with other political parties on the local bodies elections. He said one year had elapsed since the Model Town tragedy but the murderers had not been arrested, while the PML-Q had kept this issue alive. He emphatically stated that his party supports the armed forces as a matter of principle.