Defence Minister Accuses Imran Khan of Inciting Tension Again
Imran Khan Must Remain Silent to Ease Tensions: Khawaja Asif
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif. — INP/File
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has urged Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan to keep his “mouth shut” if he wants to reduce political tension in the country.
“I believe the PTI founder is trying to escalate tensions,” said Asif in an exclusive interview with Geo News, following a controversial social media post from Khan’s official X — formerly Twitter — account.
The post in question attributed to the former premier stated: “Every Pakistani should study the Hamood ur Rahman Commission Report and understand who the true traitor was, General Yahya Khan or Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.”
Asif claimed that Khan, who has been incarcerated at Adiala jail since August 2023, is attempting to recreate the turmoil of May 9.
Addressing the issue, Asif noted that efforts are underway to retract the tweet about the former Bangladeshi president. “Barrister Gohar [Khan] clarified that the social media team did not seek permission before tweeting,” he said, adding that this was the first instance of the party retracting a social media post.
Asif stated that he holds a different perspective on the history of the Bangladeshi politician and the tragedy of East Pakistan. “By exaggerating the East Pakistan tragedy today, you aim to increase tension,” he criticized Khan and his party.
The minister argued that whether in politics or sports, Khan has betrayed everyone who has supported him. “General [Qamar Javed] Bajwa’s father, General Faiz [Hamid] was his uncle, and now he is blaming them for everything,” Asif remarked, reflecting on Khan’s shifting relationships with former military officials during his time in power.
In the meantime, the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) cybercrime team decided on Thursday to take action against Khan over the controversial social media post. The anti-crime unit attempted to meet Khan at Adiala jail late Thursday night to pursue their investigation but was denied access.
Sources within Adiala jail indicated that Khan refused to cooperate with the FIA investigation related to the contentious post. “I will only answer questions in the presence of my lawyers,” Khan reportedly stated.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar defended the post, claiming it was taken out of context and had no direct involvement from Khan. “The context and comparison we made with 1971 were strictly political and not intended to criticize the army,” Gohar explained.
