By Mashal Khan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan ruling party leaders facing tough criticism after several purported audio clips of Prime Minister and key ministers leaked on social media.

The opposition party of former PM Imran Khan, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf called it a question of national security and a big cyber attack on the South Asian country. 

“The real question is, how did the recording of over 100 hours happen? Has Prime Minister House been bugged? If all sensitive topics were discussed in the Prime Minister's House, including foreign policy, is all this data now in the hands of hackers? This is not a political issue, it is a cyber attack on Pakistan,” Arsalan Khalid, information technology minister of Punjab province tweeted. 

In one purported audio, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and a government official discuss the import of industrial machinery from India, and the official told the premier that Maryam Nawaz, the top leader of the ruling party, had asked him to facilitate her son-in-law who want to import the machinery from India but the official could be heard as saying it would create big trouble for the ruling party if the issue comes into public. 

In August 2019, after Indian actions to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan cut off all trade ties with New Delhi.

Any import from India now would need special approval from the cabinet.

In another audio clip, shared by several PTI leaders on social media, in conversation Maryam Nawaz criticizing the finance minister Miftah Ismail while in another audio clip she is asking the premier to increase petrol prices but she will oppose such move in the public.

In another audio clip, the premier with his key ministers planning against the opposition Khan’s party to get approval from self-exile former PM Nawaz Sharif, who is living in London and accepts the resignations of PTI lawmakers in groups. 

Meanwhile, opposition PTI lawyer Faisal Hussain says that he will bring the audio before the Supreme Court of Pakistan as currently the top court hearing PTI lawmakers’ resignation case.

So far no statement has issued by the ruling regarding the audio leaked.