LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Saturday said that he was ready to “forgive everyone” — including those he accuse of masterminding an assassination attempt on his life — for the country’s sake, as he formally launched his party’s campaign for the upcoming elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Last year in Nov, a PTI worker died and 14 others, including the former prime minister and PTI leaders, were injured in the attack at Wazirabad’s Allahwala Chowk, where the party’s “Haqeeqi Azadi” march against the federal government had stopped on its way to Islamabad.
The PTI chairman had accused Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and Inter-Services Intelligence Director General-C Maj Gen Faisal Naseer of planning the attack on him. He had also demanded that the three resign to ensure a fair and transparent probe into the incident.
Imran says ‘ready to talk to everyone’ for Pakistan’s betterment
Separately, the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab — both of which have been under caretaker governments since the provincial assemblies were dissolved in January — should be held within 90 days.
In a video address today to kick off the PTI’s election campaign, Imran said: “I am ready to talk with everyone and compromise because considering Pakistan’s upcoming condition, I again say that the whole nation will have to confront [the crisis] together. “There was an assassination attempt on my life, and I know who attacked me [but] I am ready to forgive for the country’s sake.”
Imran cited the teachings of the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) and South Africa’s first black president and anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela as the reason for his offer to forgive.
“The country needs to unite considering the point where it is standing … this is not a matter of my ego but the country,” he said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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