Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) President Javed Hashmi on Wednesday said that his party Chairman Imran Khan has conceded that his demand for setting up a technocrat government is wrong and also assured him that the PTI would not make any attempts to derail democracy and lead to imposition of martial law in the country.
Addressing reporters after an hour-long meeting with a delegation of PTI leaders comprising Dr Arif Alvi, Mahmoodur Rasheed and Usman Dar, Hashmi said that Imran Khan had spoken to him on the phone for over half-an-hour during which he had admitted that he had erred in making the demand for a technocrat government.
“Khan has addressed my reservations regarding martial law and installation of a technocrat setup therefore I have decided to lead the PTI Azadi March to Islamabad,” said Hashmi.
The senior politician had left Lahore for his hometown Multan on Tuesday night after Imran Khan’s press conference in which he had rejected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s offer for setting up a judicial commission to probe alleged poll rigging.
Reacting to the premier’s televised address, Khan had demanded that the PM step down from office before any such probe was commissioned and that a technocrat government should be setup to reconstitute the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and hold fresh elections.
Hashmi’s hasty departure had panicked the PTI leadership as Khan also admitted that the veteran political leader was not returning his messages.
Imran Khan had told reporters earlier on Wednesday evening that he doesn’t know why Hashmi is concerned over the affects of the long march. “I sent him a message but he hasn’t responded so far,” Khan had said.