No other option is acceptable except immediate elections, Khan said 

By Mashal Khan

ISLAMABAD (TSAT) - Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday night held another massive gathering in the southeastern city of Lahore. 

Addressing a big rally at Lahore’s Minar-e-Pakistan, Khan said for the first time in his life he is addressing such a huge crowd.

The Lahore gathering was much bigger than his expectation which is the hometown of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and for the first time in the country's recent political history, the huge ground of Minar-e-Pakistan was filled with Khan’s supporters.  

 “I will never accept this imported government, selected rulers, and the gang of thieves at any cost,” Khan told the charged crowd who chanted slogans against the US and ruling parties’ alliance. 

He added that the rulers of Pakistan are being selected by the foreign countries who put their consciences on sale. The people are now aware of a selected government that is imposed by external powers, he added.

“Why the US toppled my elected government because I was not ready to compromise on the national interest of Pakistan,” Khan said and adding he will never bow down before any world power. 

“I was trying to make Pakistan’s foreign policy independent. Whatever decisions we are making in the interests of the Pakistanis but not to appease someone else. Threats had also been given in the past and the rulers had surrendered on a telephone call,” he said while referring to the former military General Musharraf who joined the US-led war in Afghanistan. 

“Over 80,000 innocent people including more than 6,000 soldiers lost their lives in US war,” Khan said 

“I had taken up the issue of blasphemy and Islamophobia on every platform. However, they did not like my move to raise my voice on this issue,” Khan referred to the US, who according to him made a conspiracy against his government and changed the regime in the South Asian country. 

The US repeatedly denied the accusations.  

“I have never taken dictation from anyone nor I will do this in the future,” Pakistan's former charismatic premier said. 

= Russia visit

Talking about his Russia visit, he said his country is facing energy crisis and he went to Moscow to resolve the energey issue in Pakistan.

“US was not happy on my visit to Russia but you know gas reserves are ending in Pakistan and Russia offered oil stocks at a 30 % lesser price.

“We were also eyeing 2 million tonnes of wheat stock from Russia which was also offered at a 20% lesser price. I could have reduced inflation through the imports from Russia,” Khan said.

“But when the US saw that our economy is going on the right track, they made a conspiracy and toppled our government,” Khan claimed. 

“A foreign conspiracy could never be succeeded without the help of people like Mir Sadiq and Mir Jafar. The people like Mir Jafar and Mir Sadiq are also present in Pakistan who took part in the foreign conspiracy, ” Khan accused the ruling parties allaince. 

“The three stooges got united and topple our government which was performing well with record exports and reviving the national economy.”

Announcing his next strategy, Khan asked his supporters to be ready for his call and the nation will come to Islamabad.

However, he didn’t announce when he is planning his next rally in Islamabad.

The analysts believed that Khan could bring a massive crowd to Islamabad for sit-ins to pressurise the government to announce the general elections. 

“I have no other demand except immediate elections,” Khan clarified.

He also warned the Elections Commission to refrain from any action against his party as case of foreign funding under hearing in the election commission.

Khan’s former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Thursday claimed that the new government is planning to ban PTI through the elections commission.

However, analysts believed that such action could move the country toward an unmanageable crisis as most supporters of Khan are young and they could react.