After the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) had made it clear that it had nothing to do with a banner campaign pleading for a military takeover, posters calling on the army chief to take control of the government have re-sprouted in Karachi, Pakistan Today has learnt.
This is the third time such banners have cropped up, requesting General Raheel Sharif to “review” his retirement decision.
Earlier in February 2016, posters appeared in all major cities after General Raheel Sharif announced he would step down later this year.
The army chief had, on January 25, laid to rest the speculations that he would continue to serve as the military chief beyond November 2016 when he is due to retire, insisting he preferred to relinquish the job unlike his two predecessors.
Banners with a photograph of General Raheel Sharif are on display again on Shahrah-e-Faisal, the city’s busiest artery, urging him to take control of the country in a military coup.
Interestingly, this time banners have been put up in the jurisdiction of Cantonment Board Faisal (CBF) which is under Cantonment Boards President Brigadier Zaheer Malik’s sway.
One of the banners has been posted on Shahrah-e-Faisal near Star Gate intersection, while another is installed near Army’s Central Ordnance Depot (COD) close to the Drigh Road railway station. The banners read: Jaane Ki Baatain Hui Purani, Khuda Ky Liye Ab Ajao (talk of leaving has got old, for God’s sake, take over now).
After February, tens of thousands of banners were posted later in July in 13 cities, including Karachi, Lahore, Quetta, Peshawar, Hyderabad, Rawalpindi, Sargodha and Faisalabad, by a party introducing itself as Move on Pakistan.
Islamabad Police on July 14 registered a case against the Move on Pakistan party under sections 120-B [criminal conspiracy], 124-A [sedition] and 505 [statements conducing to public mischief] of the Pakistan Penal Code. Later, Move on Pakistan Chairman Muhammad Kamran was arrested from Islamabad.
When this scribe tried to reach the duo whose cell phone numbers were printed on the banners for comments, both the numbers were found switched off. Despite repeated attempts, no leader from the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) could be reached for comments on fresh move of this pro-military coup group.