By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Army Chief General Asim Munir affirmed his determination on Saturday to hold accountable all those responsible for targeting military installations in various cities following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on corruption charges earlier this week.
General Munir, during his visit to the Corps Headquarters in Peshawar, where he received a comprehensive briefing on the current security situation and ongoing counterterrorism efforts in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, emphasized that the armed forces would no longer tolerate such violations of their sanctity.
Pakistan’s military media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), declared May 9, the day the protests erupted, as a “Black Day” for Pakistan, attributing the events to Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
“The Armed Forces will not tolerate any further attempt to violate the sanctity and security of its installations or vandalism and resolve to bring to justice all the planners, abettors, instigators, and executors of vandalism on the Black Day of 9th May,” the ISPR said.
Khan’s supporters stormed military establishments, set ablaze a state broadcaster’s building, smashed buses, ransacked a top army official’s house, and attacked other assets, resulting in the army being deployed in multiple cities.
More than 2,800 arrests were made, while 152 police officers were injured, 74 police vehicles were vandalized and set on fire, and 22 government buildings, including police stations and offices, were damaged in the most populous Punjab province. At least eight people were killed in the violence.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also issued a 72-hour ultimatum on Saturday, asking the authorities to arrest the protesters involved in vandalizing and setting fire to state properties, including the official residence of a senior army general.
The ISPR statement said General Munir also discussed the overall security situation, emphasizing that peace and stability would be pursued relentlessly, with no room for those who seek to disrupt the process.
PM Sharif condemned Khan’s supporters for engaging in violence and chanting slogans against the military.
“All available resources, including technological aid and intelligence, are being deployed to chase down these elements. Bringing these people to justice is a test case for the government,” said the premier. “It is time to do or die, now or never.”
Following Sharif’s announcement, Punjab’s interim government released pictures of unidentified protesters involved in an attack on a military official’s residence on Wednesday.
The caretaker set up formed a joint investigation team (JIT) to probe the torching of the corps commander’s official residence, also known as Jinnah House.
While a probe team has been established, an investigation into how the protesters managed to reach the corps commander’s house, located within the fortified Lahore Cantonment, has not yet been ordered. Furthermore, no blame has been attributed to the police or other officials for failing to resist the protesters’ rampage.
Khan distanced himself from the violent protests that occurred while he was in the custody of the country’s anti-graft body.
During his first public address since his release, Khan reiterated his party’s commitment to non-violent struggle and called for an independent inquiry into the incidents of vandalism under the supervision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
The former premier demanded an independent investigation into the May 9 incidents and proposed the formation of an independent panel by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial.
“I know who want to create anarchy in the country and take advantage of the tense situation,” Khan asserted in an hour-long maiden speech after the Islamabad High Court gave him blanket relief in all 145 cases. Khan was speaking through a video link from his Zaman Park residence.
He said those vested interest elements have taken some benefit by putting PTI’s entire senior leadership as well as around 3,500 workers behind bars.
During the address, video clips were shown of army trucks dropping ‘unidentified’ plainclothesmen, who joined PTI protesters and provoked them, causing them to unleash violence and ransack public property. “The authenticity of the videos shown has not been independently verified.”
The former prime minister took strong exception to the ISPR allegations against him and said that the ISPR [spokesperson] was not even born when he was representing Pakistan in the world.
“Never has the ISPR made such a statement. You should be ashamed. You have jumped into politics. Why don’t you form a [political] party,” Khan said in a harsh rejoinder to claims made by the army’s media wing.
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