Anger in Army over criticism against COAS: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Friday said there is a lot of anger in the Pakistan Army over criticism of the army chief by the opposition leaders.

In an interview with a private news channel, when questioned that Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed were being criticised by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM): was there anger over this within the Pakistan Army, the prime minister replied, “General Bajwa is a well-rounded man. That is why he is enduring. If someone else was in the Army, there would have been a big reaction. There is a lot of anger in the Army at the moment. But I know they are tolerating it, because they believe in democracy.”

The premier has openly challenged the opposition and said that if they spend even a week in Islamabad, he will start thinking about resignation.

The prime minister said the government had been saying it was ready for talks with the opposition, but they were not interested. “If the PDM goes on a long march, it will be known whether they will have to resign or me. I challenge them to spend a week and I will start thinking about resigning,” he asserted.

The prime minister said that he had been praying and waiting for the opposition to resign, as it will be good for the country. The premier said he has already announced to hold elections for the vacant seats if the opposition decided to resign from the legislatures.

“They are putting pressure on the Army to remove the democratic government. Does this happen in democracy? The Pakistan Army is not sitting above me, it is below me. They want an elected government to go home. It warrants application of Article 6,” he maintained.

When asked how Nawaz Sharif got out and how he would bring him back now. In response, the prime minister said, “What can I tell you now, this is a sad story. We want him deported.”

The premier said that first the NRO was taken away during Musharraf’s tenure, then Nawaz kept saying that no deal was reached. “Finally, the Saudi prince came and said that an agreement had been reached. This time Nawaz Sharif has acted in such a way that he will get an Oscar in Bollywood,” he said.

Imran Khan recently made a gesture and warned Nawaz Sharif that he would go to London specifically to bring him to Pakistan and talk to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. When asked about this, the prime minister said that he would try to bring back Nawaz Sharif, but could not say how long it would take.

It is pertinent that the government has decided to hold early Senate elections to deal with the PDM’s long march. In this regard, Imran Khan said that we want, whenever we hold elections. Show of hands means open ballot so that everyone knows who voted for whom.

The prime minister noted that the attorney general was of the opinion that open ballot elections could be held without a constitutional amendment and also advised to approach the Supreme Court for interpretation of the law in this regard. “At the same time, we will request the Election Commission to hold elections a month in advance,” he said.