In a scathing attack, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Pakistan's former army chief, who retired in November, said that Imran Khan is a threat to the country, and if his government had continued to run the nation, Pakistan would have been destroyed.
In a video interview with Pakistan Today, Bajwa alleged that Khan had used derogatory words when speaking about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in a cabinet meeting. Bajwa said that when the Crown Prince came to know about it, he cut all contact with Khan and stopped taking his phone calls.
Speaking about the reason behind the souring of his relationship with the ex-PM, the retired army head said that if he "would have supported Khan, he would have retired with dignity. However, he chose to sacrifice his own reputation for the good of the country."
In this March 23, 2019 photo, Pakistan's Army Chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, center, watches a parade with Prime Minister Imran Khan, left, and President Arif Alvi, in Islamabad, Pakistan.
© AP Photo / Anjum Naveed
This is not the first time Khan and Bajwa have been seen blaming each other. Khan, on many occasions, had alleged that Bajwa conspired with opposition parties which led to the fall of his government in April last year. And Bajwa accused Khan of wrongdoing or misusing power during his time in the prime minister's office.
Saudi Arabia is one of Pakistan's main oil suppliers, and one of its main financial aid donors: in January, Riyadh directed a $1 bln aid package to Islamabad and ensured another $4.2 bln in aid from Islamic Development Bank.
In December 2022, Saudi Arabia also extended another loan of $3 billion at 4% to Pakistan for a year. This aid comes at a time when Pakistan had less than three weeks of foreign reserves left, and the International Monetary Funds (IMF) had not confirmed a $7 billion bailout to the cash-strapped country.