By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan said the protest march to press for snap polls will resume on Tuesday from Wazirabad — the city where he came under an assassination attack last week.
“We have decided that our march will resume on Tuesday from the same (place) in Wazirabad where I and 11 others were shot, and where Moazzam was martyred,” Khan told a media briefing from Lahore.
“I will address the march from here (in Lahore), and our march, within the next 10 to 14 days, depending on the speed, will reach Rawalpindi.”
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief would lead the march said once it reaches Rawalpindi.
Former prime minister Khan suffered multiple bullet injuries in both his legs when a gun-wielding man opened fire on the protest convoy on Thursday near Gujranwala, wounding at least seven people and killing a party supporter.
The protest march had been called to demand early elections. Khan was leading the march, which was meant to end in the capital Islamabad a week later.
He accused PM Sharif, Interior minister Rana Sanaullah and an army official Major-General Faisal Nasser of the assassination plot — and demanded their resignations.
The ousted prime minister, however, did not provide evidence for his claim.
Sharif demanded the setting up of a ‘full court commission’ by the Supreme Court of Pakistan to probe Khan’s allegations.
The military condemned Khan’s remarks, describing them as “baseless allegations”.
“No one will be allowed to defame the institution or its soldiers with impunity. Keeping this in view, the government of Pakistan has been requested to investigate the matter and initiate legal action against those responsible for defamation and false accusations against the institution and its officials without any evidence whatsoever,” the military said in a statement.
Khan welcomed the offer by PM Sharif to launch a judicial commission to investigate the attack but questioned whether the inquiry would be impartial.
“How can we have an impartial and fair investigation? It can’t happen. That’s why I asked them to resign so the investigation can be fair.”
He was also surprised by ISPR’s statement that criticism of a military official was akin to defaming the armed forces.
“This means if I say a judge is wrong, this means the entire judiciary is wrong. If someone says there is a corrupt person in PTI and I say that you have said that the entire party is corrupt. Is there any logic?” Khan said.
“DG ISPR, have you noticed what you are saying? This means if I say a judge is wrong it would mean the entire judiciary is wrong, and if someone says there is a corrupt person in (the) PTI and I would say that you have said that the entire party is corrupt. Is there any logic?.”
“Why does the army then carry court-martials?”, adding that it is because an officer does something wrong which is why such a practice is carried.
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