ISLAMABAD
\nMinister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry said on Monday that the PTI\u2019s \u201cunjustified\u201d criticism of the army had pushed the institution to respond. bIn remarks aired on the media, he also accused the opposition party of repeatedly criticising the army and its leadership for its own political gains.
\nReferring to arguments by the PTI that the army should not interfere in politics, Chaudhry said, \u201cThe army is not intervening in politics. You, in order to further your own politics or to come into power by riding on someone else\u2019s shoulders, repeatedly try to drag the army and its head into politics.
\n\u201cYou direct unjustified and unnecessary criticism [at them]. You level allegations without any reason,\u201d he said. He said the army had been serving the country and recalled that it defeated a \u201cbig power in the world\u201d recently \u2014 an apparent reference to the conflict between Pakistan and India in May.
\nThe state minister further said that the army took pride in its martyrs, victories and in protecting Pakistan, \u201cand you criticise it and its head for no reason\u201d. \u201cFor how long will the institution remain silent? Eventually, it had to respond. The PTI pushed them to respond,\u201d he added.
\n\u201cThe army and its head showed patience and overlooked [the criticism] for a very long time. But every other day, the PTI founder in his tweets and messages, and others in press conferences after meeting Imran, would make unjustified accusations and criticise.\u201d The state minister also alleged that the PTI never criticised India\u2019s aggression or condemned terrorists.
\n\u201cHaving a soft spot for those terrorists [\u2026] and directing all criticism toward Pakistan\u2019s institutions, Pakistan\u2019s army and its head, warrants an answer,\u201d he asserted.\u201cHow long can it be ignored, how long can it be overlooked?\u201d
\nHe further stated that the government had invited the PTI to Parliament for talks multiple times. \u201cBut we are now embarrassed to have invited these types of people for talks, those who are not worthy of it.\u201d
\nChaudhry went on to allege that Imran \u201ccame into power by riding on someone else\u2019s shoulders\u201d. He further said that after that only a \u201cmentally ill patient\u201d would consider himself a \u201cknow-it-all\u201d and \u201cnecessary\u201d for the country. He further alleged that Imran had come into power in 2018 with the support of the military establishment.
\n\u201cAnd since no one is supporting you today, you are levelling criticism in an effort to blackmail the army so that you can compel them into supporting your rise to power again,\u201d Chaudhry alleged. The state minister also questioned the PTI\u2019s performance in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the last 13 years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry said on Monday that the PTI\u2019s \u201cunjustified\u201d criticism of the army had pushed the institution to respond. bIn remarks aired on the media, he also accused the opposition party of repeatedly criticising the army and its leadership for its own political gains. Referring to arguments by the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":467966,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-518908","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-national"},"yoast_head":"\n