Material being prepared for my character assassination: Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman and ex-PM Imran Khan has claimed that his opponents have hired companies that are preparing material for his character assassination. 

He said this during an interview with a local TV channel here amid repeated warnings and cautioning by PTI-backed social media accounts regarding what it termed 'deep fake videos'. 

Such videos use a form of artificial intelligence called deep learning to create life-like but fake videos of people. Similarly, the social media platforms opposed to him are also discussing this matter and from different angles while some have regretted this "element" in the political arena and want an end to it.

The PTI chairman maintained that the Sharifs have made preparations to launch a character assassination drive against him after Eid. "Now that the Eid is over, you will see they are fully prepared for my character assassination. They have hired companies that are readying the material on this count,” he said, adding that he had to face mafias, the biggest of which was the Sharif mafia. They always resort to attacking on personal level because they have been indulging in corruption for the past 35 years. “When someone talks on their (Sharifs) corruption, they attack his personal character.

My ex-wife Jemima was also targeted in the past and a campaign was run against her, accusing her of being part of the Jewish lobby. Likewise, a false case was filed against her, accusing her of exporting antique tiles from the country,” he explained.

He again came hard on the incumbent coalition government and alleged that 60 per cent of the federal cabinet was out on bail. Referring to the prime minister and the Punjab chief minister, Imran said the father is on bail and so is the son, whereas Maryam is also out on bail and Nawaz Sharif has been convicted and his sons have fled abroad. So what defence will they have?

In democracy, Imran pointed out that they (Sharifs) are required to give an answer for the allegations levelled against them, insisting that they can't come up in any democracy if they are out on bail; hence, they can't get any position. He continued that instead of giving an answer for the billions of rupees they had stolen, the Sharifs will now focus on his character assassination. He wondered what was Jemima's crime? "She was my wife, now they have found Farah and her crime is that she is a close friend of Bushra." He contended that the Sharifs have made tapes similar to the ones of former chief justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar and the late judge Arshad Malik.

About the Sharifs, he said: "This is mafia style. I only want the nation to understand that if you want to smear anyone’s name, there are companies that can help you to achieve this.