Imran asks military to refrain from 'political engineering' in next elections

Pakistans ousted prime minister Imran Khan has asked the powerful establishment to refrain from political engineering in the general elections later this year as he asserted that his party is the only party that can pull the cashstrapped country out of the current economic quagmireAddressing the Pakistan TehreekeInsaf PTI partys women convention in Karachi via video link from his Zaman Park residence in Lahore on Sunday the cricketerturnedpolitician once again blamed former Army chief Gen retd Qamar Javed Bajwa for his ouster as well as the current political and economic crisis facing PakistanKhan expressed fear that political engineering would be carried out in the next general elections to weaken his party and urged the powerful establishment to refrain from making such a mistakeThe military establishment has not learned anything from its past mistakes as political engineering is being carried out to hurt my party for the future elections he claimedHe alleged that the military establishment was involved in efforts to unite different factions of the Muttahida Qaumi Moveshyment MQM in Karachi and sending the Balochistan Awami Party BAP leaders from south Punjab into the Pakshyistan Peoples Party PPP because it feared the political strength of his partyThe 70yearold politician also accused the establishment of making efforts to bring the Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz PMLN to power in Punjab provinceAlso read Imran Khans party blames former Pakistan army chief Bajwa other generals for PTI govts ousterOur establishment has already done so much damage to the country but still it is not ready to learn anything from the past said Khan who had so far observed caution regarding new army chief Gen Asim Munir and his policies He had rather hoped that the military under Gen Munir would remain neutral Continuing his tirade against Gen retd Bajwa Khan said the former military chief was responsible for the crisis in the countryThis man pushed Pakistan into crisis I had told him before the ouster of my government in April last that weakening the PTI government would not be in the interest of the country Bajwa ruined Pakistans political and economic gains Khan said adding that only free and fair elections could steer the country out of the crisisKhan had been at loggerheads with Bajwa ever since his ouster from power in April by a noconfidence motion Last month Khan accused Bajwa of playing a double game against his government and said that he committed a big mistake by extending the tenure of then military chief in 2019Gen Bajwa 61 retired on November 29 after getting a threeyear extension in 2019 by the then Prime Minister Khan who turned out to be the biggest critic of the Pakistan ArmyThe powerful Army which has ruled the coupprone country for more than half of its 75 plus years of existence has hitherto wielded considerable power in the matters of security and foreign policyKhan is the only Pakistani prime minister to be ousted in a noconfidence vote in Parliament He had alleged that the noconfidence vote was part of a USled conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia China and Afghanistan The US has denied the allegationsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever