PTI dissociates itself from ‘overseas protests

F.P. Report

ISLAMABAD: After back-to-back protests led by overseas Pakistanis in the United States (US), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan dissociated with the ongoing protests overseas, clarifying that his party did not have any part in it in the recent demonstrations outside the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) headquarters.

“If overseas Pakistanis are making up something, then it would be their own decision,” Barrister Gohar said Saturday while speaking to media outside Adiala Jail — Rawalpindi post-hearing of 190m NCA scandal case against PTI founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi.

Responding a question, the PTI chairman said that the party did not ask the IMF to stop disbursing financial aid to Pakistan; however, it admitted that the party urged the global lender’s recall its commitments for free and fair elections and transparent allocations of its funds.

After reports of internal conflicts in PTI over alliance with the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), the politico made it clear that his party’s merger with the party was “serious and best decision” in circumstances prevailing at that time when PTI lost its “bat” symbol and was looking for options to secure its reserved seats. “Not only reserved seats, we also wanted to get protection from our independent candidates as merging with a political party would also stop defections,” said Gohar.

He reiterated that PTI-SIC merger was best decision taken after much deliberations. Gohar pinned hopes on the Supreme Court (SC) to provide justice to the Imran-led party that had been rejected for being eligible to get reserved seats for women and minorities.