Ramping up his attack against General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who recently stepped down as Pakistan’s army chief, former prime minister Imran Khan said he regrets extending the tenure of the military chief in 2019.
Terming his decision a “big mistake”, Khan accused Bajwa of playing a “double game” against his government.
In an interview with a local TV channel, the ex-PM said he regretted putting his trust in the then-army chief. “I would believe in everything General Bajwa would tell me because our interests were the same… that we had to save the country.”
“I did not get to know how the lies were spoken and I was betrayed,” he added.
Khan, who was ousted in April this year after losing a no-confidence motion in parliament, claimed that he received reports from the intelligence agencies on “what games were being played against his government”.
He alleged that the military establishment under General Bajwa was in cahoots with Pakistan Muslim League (N) chief Nawaz Sharif to topple his government.
The former-cricketer-turned politician further alleged that their partnership became apparent following the removal of Lt Gen (retd.) Faiz Hameed, considered close to Bajwa, as the ISI chief in October 2021.
“Gen Bajwa was playing a double game and I discovered later that even PTI’s members were being given different messages,” he was quoted as saying.
Gen Bajwa, 61, retired on November 29 after getting a three-year extension in 2019 by the then prime minister Khan.
On a number of occasions, Khan had lashed out against the former military chief for allegedly interfering in government affairs.
Khan and Bajwa used to enjoy cordial relations as it was widely believed and claimed by the opposition that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party chief won the elections in 2018 with the help of the army, which was headed by Bajwa at that time.
In his farewell address last week, Bajwa said that his decision to keep the military establishment “apolitical” will shield it from the “vagaries of politics” in the coup-prone country.
(With inputs from agencies)
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