Premier says JUI-F\u2019s Azadi March driven by foreign agenda and will harm Kashmir cause
\nour correspondent
\nISLAMABAD
\nPrime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said that he will not cave into pressure from the opposition parties who have been asking for his resignation and threatening to lock down the federal capital later this month.
\nSpeaking to senior journalists and analysts, the premier talked about multiple issues, including unemployment, inflation and the joint opposition\u2019s upcoming Azadi March.
\nThe premier said that Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman\u2019s protest is driven by a specific agenda and has the support of foreign powers. \u201cHis plan of protest has sent a wave of joy in India,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cI cannot understand what Maulana\u2019s problem is or what the opposition is after,\u201d he said, adding that despite everything the government would still allow the opposition to protest in Islamabad as long as they remain peaceful.
\nRegarding the opposition\u2019s demand for his resignation, the premier said, \u201cLet me be very clear that I will not resign on opposition\u2019s demand.\u201d
\nQuestioning the timing of the march, he said that it would hurt the Kashmir cause.
\n\u201cIndia may use this opportunity to attack Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). I have already directed Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa to ensure that troops are ready for retaliation,\u201d he added.
\nWhen asked about his dharna in Islamabad in 2014, the premier said that he had staged the sit-in because he had proofs of election rigging in four constituencies.
\n\u201cWe came out on streets after exhausting all possible options, which platform has Maulana used to address his grievances before coming out on streets? Attention is being diverted from the Kashmir issue because of this march. We must think who will benefit from all of this,\u201d he added.
\nResponding to a question about media restrictions, he said they are free to give coverage to JUI-F and other opposition parties.
\nCommenting on incarcerated former prime minister Nawaz Sharif\u2019s health, the premier said that only a court of law could take a decision on the former\u2019s treatment outside the country.
\n\u201cShehbaz Sharif says Imran Khan will be held responsible if anything happens to Nawaz Sharif \u2026 I am not a doctor or a judge and the matter of Maryam Nawaz\u2019s meeting with her father would also be made by the court,\u201d he remarked.
\nThe prime minister added that he had directed Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar to provide best possible medical facilities to the former premier.
\nTalking about other issues, the prime minister acknowledged that inflation and unemployment remain a big problem which his government is trying to resolve.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Premier says JUI-F\u2019s Azadi March driven by foreign agenda and will harm Kashmir cause our correspondent ISLAMABAD Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said that he will not cave into pressure from the opposition parties who have been asking for his resignation and threatening to lock down the federal capital later this month. Speaking to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":88701,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-89386","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n