Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, said that his party is ready to hold talks with the military, a remark that drew a lot of flak from the Shehbaz Sharif-led government, Geo News reported.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf founder, who appeared in a court established in Adiala jail for a hearing, said: "We are ready to hold talks with the military. The army should nominate their representative [for negotiations]."
Khan, who has been imprisoned for nearly a year, said that his party had never levelled allegations against the army, but had only criticised the armed forces.
He further said that if any PTI worker was found guilty in the May 9, 2023, riots then the authorities should penalise the individual.
The deposed premier further reiterated that the incumbent government wanted to destroy his party by creating a wedge between PTI and the armed forces.
Referring to the repeated arrests of PTI leadership across the province, the incarcerated PTI founder termed Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz "fascist."
Speaking about his arrest last year, Khan alleged that he was "abducted from the judicial complex" and "it was declared legal by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Aamer Farooq."
The outreach by Imran drew sharp rebukes from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders, who slammed the jailed former premier for "dragging" the army into political matters, as reported by Geo News.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad today, Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that the incarcerated ex-premier sought a dialogue with the army after the institution decided to remain apolitical, recalling that the same Khan had equated "neutral with animal" when the army announced staying away from political matters.
Calling the 71-year-old cricketer-turned-politician a "security risk" for the country's economy, Tarar said Khan has previously said "I will not spare," and now he has come down to making beseeching.
"You are a security risk for the country, as your people say that there is no Pakistan without the PTI founder," he said. He termed the PTI a "terrorist outfit," saying this terror organisation was not suitable for Pakistan, Geo News reported.
PML-N leader and Punjab minister Marriyum Aurangzeb also rebuked Imran Khan's call for talks, saying that the "self-proclaimed revolutionary figure" has descended from his previous stances of "I will not seek pardon" to seeking an apology.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
