ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan kicked off an anti-government campaign on Wednesday with a rally in Peshawar, his first since he was ousted from the country's top political office in a no-confidence vote last week.
The rally comes days after Shehbaz Sharif was elected prime minister by the lower house of parliament on Monday, with Khan and his party’s lawmakers resigning en masse. The former PM says the campaign to oust him was part of a foreign conspiracy orchestrated by the United States, which has denied the charge.
“The nation has proved that this imported government is not acceptable to them,” Khan said in a late-night speech, referring to spontaneous rallies held around the country on Sunday, the day he was ousted.
“We have to decide whether we want to be slaves or be independent. Are we here to be the slaves of the slaves of America?” he said, in a reference to the new government of Shehbaz Sharif.
Ousted Pakistan's prime minister Imran Khan delivers a speech to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party's supporters during a public rally in Peshawar, Pakistan, on April 13, 2022. (AFP)
Khan said he would hold rallies across Pakistan, with the next gatherings planned for Lahore and Karachi this week, and make the nation stand up against the new "imported government."
“We will stay on the roads until we make them announce elections, even if by force,” Khan said.
In a veiled rebuke to the Pakistani military, he asked "our institutions" how the nuclear codes could be given in the hands of thieves, referring to Sharif and his elder brother former PM Nawaz Sharif, both of whom have corruption cases pending against them in multiple Pakistani courts.
“Do you have no fear of god?” Khan said.
Both Khan and his supporters have expressed disappointment that the military and army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa did not support him against the alleged foreign plot and block his ouster.
Since Khan’s removal on Sunday, top trending hashtags on Twitter have targeted the army, the judiciary and the new government, with tweets using those hashtags soaring past 4.5 million by Wednesday. One hashtag that remained the top trend in Pakistan for three days was #BajwaSurrender.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has said it is taking action against Khan supporters involved in the online smear campaigns and has also made arrests.
