President Arif Alvi said on Thursday that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan should publicly denounce the May 9 events, which saw attacks on government buildings and military installations.
The president, a close aide to the PTI leader, called for action against the event’s miscreants in an interview. The PTI leadership, which includes the party chairman, has denounced the attacks in which the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi was also a target and demanded an investigation into the incidents by the Supreme Court. Following Khan’s arrest in the Al-Qadir Trust case, which resulted in at least 10 fatalities and numerous injuries, violent protests broke out, forcing the authorities to detain thousands of PTI employees.
The military and the government alike have vowed to try the vandals who attacked army installations under the Pakistan Army Act, Official Secrets Act, and other laws.
Human rights organisations and some in the government have opposed trying civilians under the army act, but agreed that the vandals should be tried and “due process” be followed.
The president, in the interview, also added that during the trials, the suspects’ human rights should be respected and they shouldn’t be tortured.
“The people involved should be punished in line with the law,” he said.
The president added that the PTI chairman did not oppose Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir.
“Imran Khan asked me to tell General Bajwa that he should accept anyone whom the institution approves as the next chief,” President Alvi said.
Khan has criticised the military’s incumbent leadership and blamed a senior armed forces official for his alleged involvement in the November 3, 2022, assassination attempt.
But at the same time, the PTI chief has also said that he will not interfere with the institution’s matters when he comes back to power.
“I do not intervene in the institution’s matters. I’ve repeatedly said this,” he said.
