Marriyum terms \’Jail Bharo\’ conspiracy against Pakistan | The Express Tribune

ISLAMABAD:

Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb on Wednesday alleged that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan’s ‘Jail Bharo’ movement is a conspiracy against the country.

Addressing a press conference, the minister said the underprivileged segments of society were suffering because of the former premier’s \’thefts and robberies\’.

Marriyum maintained that Imran was evading cases before various institutions including high courts, district courts, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) as he did not have any answers.

“After several abandoned plans in the past nine months, he has hatched a new conspiracy in the form of the Jail Bharo movement,” she said, adding the movement should be called Jail Bacho (save from incarceration).

Calling the movement a “drama”, she questioned why 200 innocent people were being arrested when Imran Khan was the one being summoned and PTI leaders were being asked about the cypher cnspiracy and Toshakhana (gift depository) case.

“These are not political arrests, these are criminal arrests,\” she stated and reiterated that Imran needed to give answers.

“Nawaz Sharif went to jail with his children. You [Imran] stay in your Zaman Park bunker with your children roaming in Britain,” she said and asked why others should go to jail while the \”criminal\” was sitting in his residence.

She maintained that the Jail Bharo movement was not for the populace, but was rather a conspiracy against the country.

Read Rana says \’miscreants\’ to be arrested as \’Jail Bharo\’ approaches

“If you sympathized with the country why did you ruin foreign relations and hike petrol, LNG, sugar, and flour prices during your tenure,” she questioned.

Marriyum furthered that Imran himself used to call PML-Q leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi the “biggest dacoit of the country” but was now supporting him and praising him for becoming party leader.

She stated that Imran alleged a foreign conspiracy after his ouster and now claims that there was no conspiracy.

“He filled his pockets during his term and left. After the constitutional vote of no confidence against him, he forced ministers, the National Assembly speaker and the president to behave in an unconstitutional manner,” she added.

The information minister continued that he asked his supporters to storm the Lahore High Court (LHC) when the court summoned him, thereby leading people astray and attacking the judiciary.

“He will not stop,” she said.

According to the minister, the ‘Jail Bharo’ “drama” should begin with Imran’s arrest after he “robbed and harmed the country” but had no answers for anything.

“That is why he is starting this movement,” she added.

Marriyum maintained that the “performance” needed to be shut down.

Imran Khan on Wednesday officially announced the beginning of the party\’s Jail Bharo Tehreek – a drive to court arrests in an effort to register its protest against the \”attack\” on fundamental rights and the economic \”meltdown\” brought on by the incumbent government.

Taking to Twitter, the former premier elaborated upon two reasons behind the protest movement: \”One, it is a peaceful, non-violent protest against the attack on our constitutionally-guaranteed fundamental rights […] Two, it is against the economic meltdown brought on by cabal of crooks who have money laundered billions in looted wealth and gotten NROs for themselves while crushing the people, especially the poor and middle class, under the burden of spiralling inflation and rising unemployment.\”