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Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan kicked off his long march on Friday by taking a potshot at the country's spy agency chief Nadeem Anjum saying the latter's "political presser" conveniently ignored any reference to the "group of thieves" that got Rs 1.1 trillion theft written off, reported Dawn.
This reference was towards the members of the ruling coalition. Imran kicked off the Haqiqi Azadi long march from Lahore's Liberty Chowk to Islamabad on Friday. In a strong warning to the country's intelligence agency, Imran Khan said that "he could have exposed the ISI but refrained for the betterment of the country." "DG ISI (ISI Director-General Nadeem Anjum) open your ears and listen, I know a lot of things but I am quiet only because I don't want to harm my country... I do constructive criticism for betterment otherwise there was a lot I could say," Imran Khan and other party members started off the much-anticipated "Haqiqi Azadi Long March" from Lahore's Liberty Chowk to Islamabad. The rivalry between Imran Khan and ISI has been an upbeat issue since Imran Khan's ouster from power. Earlier, Imran Khan said that the then-opposition coalition was "afraid" that he would appoint former ISI chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed as the next chief of the army staff. "They were afraid that I wanted to appoint Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed. They feared that if that would have happened then it would shatter their future," the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman said. Clarifying his stance, Imran Khan said, "I never thought of appointing someone as army chief. I have never taken a decision that is not based on merit." During the rally, Imran Khan also called out two other army officers for playing the role of "Dirty Harry" for picking up and torturing a party senator. Seeking the attention of army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, the PTI chairman said these officers were tarnishing the image of the institution. Meanwhile, Pakistan spy chief Nadeem Anjum's unprecedented press conference over the mystery surrounding the killing of senior Pakistan journalist Arshad Sharif was held as the spy agency wanted to give a direct befitting reply to PTI chief Imran Khan who was making false statements by taking the names of top officials. Nadeem Anjum and Director General (DG) of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Major General Babar Iftikhar on Thursday held a press conference where one of the key takeaways was that the slain Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif was fed propaganda on cypher by Imran Khan, reported The News International. Responding to queries as to why ISI's chief Lt-Gen Nadeem Anjum had to come before the public the military sources told the media outlet, "attempts are being made to discredit the Pakistan Army on the killing of Arshad Sharif by creating propaganda against it, to turn friends into enemies in the name of a cypher." "Calling their own army names and embarrassing them, aspersions are being cast on those who have been putting up with it all patiently for the last eight months. Linking false and fake statements to top officials, people are being misled," the source added. Adding further it said, "When the State is in a state of war, the people and the army tackle it together." "An officer who had kept himself even from publishing his pictures was forced to take such a big step just because the country is in a difficult time," the source revealed. (ANI)
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