Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that the use of force against his supporters could lead to the division of the country like in 1971, when Bangladesh was carved out from Pakistan.
“This is what happened in East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh — ed.note). They pitted the Army against the largest political group. Didn’t they learn the lessons? The nation was divided back then,” Khan said in an address to his supporters on Thursday evening.
The stark warning came after skirmishes broke out between Khan's supporters and police at the ex-leader's Lahore residence.
Over 60 people, many of them police personnel, were injured as a result of the clashes. Police had arrived at Khan’s residence to execute a non-bailable arrest warrant in the state repository or, ‘Toshakhana’ case. But the ex-PM has managed to evade his arrest so far.
“The government is creating enmity among the people and the security forces…” stated Khan.
Khan further suggested that the Shehbaz Sharif government was “serving the interests” of Islamabad’s enemies by creating such rifts in the society, with his supporters and him personally being treated like “terrorists”.
“They even tried to assassinate me,” he said, a reference to the alleged assassination plot in November, when Khan suffered bullet injuries to his leg during a ‘long march’ held to press for the demand for an early federal election.
Khan added that he was open to political reconciliation with the Sharif administration in the larger interest of the country.
Imran Khan, who served as Prime Minister between 2018 and 2022, was removed from power last April in a parliamentary no-confidence vote backed by then leader of the opposition Shehbaz Sharif.
The PTI chief has disputed the vote, saying that it was part of a conspiracy hatched by the US which was unhappy with Islamabad’s independent foreign policy under his government.