Political crisis in Pakistan is scripted, says Javed Hashmi

Hashmi’s embarrassing claims came just as army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif triggering speculations that he has asked the PM to step down.

With deadly confrontation between government and protesters in the capital showing little signs of letting up, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf’s (PTI) disgruntled president Javed Hashmi made a sensational statement on Monday that the political crisis is scripted.
Addressing a televised news conference Hashmi insinuated that Imran Khan is agitating through plan which envisages that that the army and the Supreme Court would oust Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and call new elections. Hashmi’s embarrassing claims came just as army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif triggering speculations that he has asked the PM to step down.
Simultaneously, the SC hearing a petition to pre-empt any unconstitutional development, asked the PTI and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek to file written proposals suggesting how the court could intervene to resolve ongoinging conflict.
Both the army and the government denied the rumours as baseless. The prime minister conferred with parliamentary leaders of all political parties where he declared that he would neither resign nor go on temporary leave as proposed by the PTI.
Hashmi said he was ashamed (by reliance on army support) and said he was sure Imran too was (ashamed). He said Imran ousted him as PTI president in violation of the party constitution and insisted he continued to be member and president of the party.
He said the PTI’s core committee had opposed merging the protest with Qadri’s. He also criticised the decision to align with Shaikh Rasheed.
Hashmi: “Imran used to say we have to take Sheikh Rasheed with us ... we have to ensure his victory in the elections ... why should we take him along? what use is he to PTI? Why did we get him elected? I had defeated Rasheed before in the elections.”
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• Pakistan