ISLAMABAD: Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) opposition party on Tuesday reiterated its call for a judicial probe into violent protests that hit Pakistan on May 9, 2023 over Khan’s brief arrest in a graft case.
Khan’s arrest saw hundreds of his supporters allegedly pour into the streets across the country, ransacking military and other properties. Thousands were arrested in the aftermath and some were tried by military courts after the authorities promised to bring the perpetrators and instigators of the violence to justice.
The PTI says the May 9 incident was a “false flag operation” and the subsequent crackdown was aimed at keeping Khan, who was ousted from power in a parliamentary no-trust vote in April 2022, and his party from returning to power in Pakistan’s national election held in February this year, after being delayed for months.
Asked about the claims, a Pakistani military spokesman said on Tuesday the May 9 incident was not related to the military alone, but to the whole of Pakistan, noting that the protesters had attacked military installations, burnt the residence of the founder of Pakistan and vandalized martyrs’ monuments.
The spokesman, Maj-Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, said the perpetrators and facilitators of the riots needed to be brought to justice as per the constitution and law of the land to preserve the credibility and faith in the country’s justice system.
“See, all this what he has said, we challenge him on these things that all what he is saying, its proofs should be brought before the people,” Raoof Hasan, the PTI information secretary, said at a press conference.
“And the easiest way for that is, what we started demanding immediately after May 9, that an independent, transparent judicial inquiry be instituted, which established who committed the crime and who were behind them.”
Last week, the PTI also issued a circular and urged party members to hold rallies in every provincial assembly constituency to commemorate the May 9 protests, citing directives from Khan who has been in jail since August last year.
Khan, 71, was ousted in 2022 after falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military leaders who many say backed him into power in 2018. In opposition, he waged an unprecedented campaign of defiance against the military establishment which has directly ruled the South Asian nation for nearly half of its history.
Arguably Pakistan’s most popular politician, Khan says the cases against him are “politically motivated,” aimed at keeping him from returning to power. The military denies it.