–Imran tells govt spokespersons to give befitting response to Opp
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday urged the superior the judiciary to take notice of the alleged video of Accountability Judge Arshad Malik that was presented by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership as proof of Nawaz Sharif’s innocence in an explosive presser.
Chairing a meeting of the party spokesperson, the PM said, “Judiciary is free and independent, it should take notice of the matter.”
The “negative agenda” of the opposition won’t deter the government from the on-going accountability drive, he said.
“The accountability drive in the country will go ahead as intended and the judiciary, an important institution of the state, should not be targeted,” he added.
He also advised his ministers and party leaders to “protect state institutions, especially the judiciary, against attacks from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership”. He said the spokespersons should give a befitting response to opposition’s criticism and “false propaganda”.
On July 6, PML-N VP Maryam Nawaz had said alleged that the judge had been blackmailed into giving the verdict against Nawaz despite knowing that he was “innocent”.
Maryam also showed the reporters an alleged confessional video statement of Arshad Malik in which he tells a PML-N leader that he could find “no proof of corruption against the former premier”. “There is no evidence of a single penny being shifted from Pakistan illegally,” Maryam quoted the judge as saying in the video after showing it to the reporters.
The video was dismissed by Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan as fake. She also demanded that a forensic audit be conducted of the video.
On July 7, Judge Malik himself issued a stark denial of the authenticity of the video, saying that it was an attempt of mixing up facts to present them out of context. On which, Maryam said that the content of the video had been “attested by the fact that the judge did not deny its authenticity”. She also said that the video has vindicated Nawaz in front of 22 billion people.