After the reign of Imran Khan came to an end last week, a prominent Pakistan journalist said the political drama that unfolded in the country leading up to the ouster of the country's Prime Minister shows that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairmen will go to just about any lengths to hold on to power.
In an opinion piece for The Washington Post, Pakistani journalist and tv personality Hamid Mir dismissed the foreign interference allegations made by Imran Khan and said, "If anyone doubted it before, this episode shows that he'll go to just about any lengths to hold on to power."
"I wrote in January that Khan's government was heading for a major crisis -- one entirely of his own making. His enemies didn't need any help from abroad to orchestrate his downfall," Mir wrote.
He explained how newly-elected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's hard-hitting speech struck a major blow to Khan's conspiracy narrative. "The security agencies already completed their investigation into the alleged foreign plot many days ago and informed Khan that there was no evidence."
According to a Pakistani journalist, Khan even tried to make a deal with the head of the Pakistan army to keep himself in power. "He offered to keep Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa in office indefinitely in return for the army's support. But the general declined."
Notably, this came as Pakistan's military media wing announced that Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa is not seeking an extension of his term.
Addressing a press conference here today, Director-General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar said that Bajwa will complete his tenure in November this year.
"Let me put this to rest. The chief of army staff is neither seeking an extension nor will he accept an extension. No matter what, he will be retiring on the 29th of November 2022," Major Iftikhar was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune newspaper.
Lastly, Mir in his Washington Post article warned that Shehbaz Sharif must realize that he is not facing an ordinary politician.
"He must understand that his opponent is a ruthless intriguer who will stop at nothing. One can only hope that Sharif is up to the task," the article.
( With inputs from ANI )
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