Islamabad: Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan has set the cat among the pigeons when he said Pakistanis would “celebrate and distribute sweets” if the military took over Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government, unlike in Turkey.
The 63-year-old former Test captain, who also leads an opposition party in Pakistan called Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), compared Sharif’s situation to that of Turkey’s President Recep Erdogan who faced an attempted coup recently and argued that people would not back the government in Pakistan the same way.
Referring to the situation in Turkey, the former Test all-rounder addressing a political demonstration at Islam Garh in Pakistan occupied-Kashmir ahead of elections in the region on July 21 reportedly said: “People will celebrate a military takeover in Pakistan. The democracy here is threatened by Nawaz Sharif’s monarchy, not military. Erdogan served his people, paid off their country’s debts, and constructed hospitals. That is why people supported him against the military. We demand Nawaz to let us know where he got the money from to have offshore assets, but he does not answer us.”
According to the Daily Telegraph, government minister Khawaja Saad Rafique described the remarks as “shameful” and a “conspiracy against national cohesion and solidarity”. He added: “It shows his ill wishes against democracy.”
It comes just days after posters came up all over the country, including the capital Islamabad, bearing images of Pakistan’s military chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, next to the words “For God’s sake, take over!” It is highly unlikely that the military has anything to do with the posters, but anybody calling for a coup can be prosecuted with treason charges under Pakistan’s Constitution.
