Imran Khan calls Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir 'power-hungry'

Lahore, Aug 27 (PTI) Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday accused Army Chief Asim Munir of being "power-hungry" and running “the worst kind of dictatorship” in the country.

"Army Chief Asim Munir is power-hungry, which is why he has imposed the worst kind of dictatorship in Pakistan. Munir neither understands morality nor Islam," the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) patron-in-chief, who has been in jail for over two years in multiple cases, said in a post on social media.

"Instead of demanding an apology from me, it is Asim Munir who should apologise to me (on May 9, 2023, riots). It was Munir who orchestrated May 9, and it was he who stole the CCTV footage. Today, the May 9 is Asim Munir’s insurance policy," Khan said.

The 72-year-old cricketer-turned-politician has been behind bars since August 2023 after he was booked in multiple cases. Currently, he is in the Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi.

"There is no hybrid system in the country. What exists is Asim Munir’s dictatorship. That is why Trump invited Asim Munir instead of (Prime Minister) Shehbaz Sharif," Khan said and lambasted Munir for crossing all limits of fascism and oppression.

Khan said his relatives, including two nephews, had been abducted despite having no link to politics.

"I have been kept in complete solitary confinement, allowed only three meetings in three months. Even meetings with my lawyers and family are blocked for months. All this is being done to pressure me," he said.

Khan further said that for the past eight months, his wife, Bushra Begum, has also been kept in solitary confinement and pressured to leave him, but she stood by his side.

"She has been kept in solitary confinement, subjected to electric shocks, has wounds on her body, and is given dirty water to use. Every form of cruelty is being inflicted upon her. And all of this is being done by Asim Munir," Khan claimed.

"My message to him (Munir) is this -- no matter how much pressure you put on me, no matter how many of my family members you imprison, I will neither bow down nor accept this oppression. I will continue my struggle for true freedom at all costs," Khan asserted.  Khan also accused Munir of destroying institutions.

"The judiciary has been destroyed, the media silenced, and the police are being used in ways that have turned them into criminals," he said.

He also criticised the SIFC (a military-led economic body), saying it cannot fix the economy without restoring the rule of law.

"Every dictatorship in history has co-opted judges to tighten its grip on the system. Today, because of spineless judges, the rule of law in Pakistan has been completely destroyed," he said. PTI MZ SKS ZH