No evidence suggesting US' involvement in regime change, says Pakistan Army as court starts hearing plea against Imran
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's powerful Army has contradicted Prime Minister Imran Khan's remarks accusing America of hatching a conspiracy to topple his government, saying there was no evidence of interference in the country's internal matters, according to a media report.
Prime Minister Khan had chaired a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) on March 27 to discuss the issue of a "threatening letter" to remove his government.
A statement issued after the meeting expressed concern over the non-diplomatic language used in the cable, saying it was tantamount to interference in the internal matters of Pakistan.
The NSC then decided to issue a demarche to the United States.
Khan pedalled the narrative that Army top leaders endorsed the letter and its threatening context was genuine.
Later, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Qasim Suri used the statement to block a vote on the no-trust move in a development that triggered a constitutional crisis.
However, official sources told The Express Tribune newspaper on Monday that a wrong impression was given about the military leadership endorsing the view of the government.
One source said the prime minister could make public minutes of the meeting because the NSC statement was only meant for the media.
"Are there any minutes of the NSC meeting? Have all the participants signed on the minutes of the meeting, the source asked.
He said that the minutes of the meeting are considered official documents only when all the participants of NSC sign.
This suggests that the military leadership had not signed on the minutes of the meeting.
The source further said that the US had not sent any letter to the government and it was the assessment of Pakistan's Ambassador to the US Masood Khan after his meeting with the US officials.
The source said that there was no evidence of any linkage between the vote of no confidence and the diplomatic cable that had triggered the ongoing political and constitutional crises.
In a live address to the nation last week, 69-year-old Khan discussed a 'threat letter' and termed it as part of a foreign conspiracy to remove him as he was not acceptable for following an independent foreign policy.
He named the US as the country behind the threat letter in what appeared to be a slip of tongue.
The US State Department has firmly rejected Prime Minister Khan's remarks over Washington's role in an alleged foreign conspiracy to oust him from power.
America also asserted that it did not send any letter to Pakistan on the current political situation in the country as it sought to refute allegations of America's involvement in the no-confidence motion against the Imran Khan-led government.
According to The Express Tribune report, another sign that the military leadership was reluctant to endorse the conspiracy allegations by the prime minister was the recent speech delivered by Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
The Chief of Army Staff said that Pakistan enjoyed an excellent and long-term relationship with the United States and that the US is Pakistan's largest export partner.
The powerful Pakistan Army, which has ruled the coup-prone country for more than half of its 73 plus years of existence, has hitherto wielded considerable power in the matters of security and foreign policy.
Gen. Bajwa's statement on the Russian-Ukraine conflict was also different from the stance adopted by the PTI government.
The Army chief not only expressed serious concern over the Russian invasion but insisted that the Russian aggression against a smaller nation could not be condoned.
This highlights the fact that the military leadership may not be on the same page with the PTI government on certain foreign policy issues, according to the report.
However, the military leadership is not making public any statement to clarify if they endorsed the foreign-funded plot against Khan, it said.
Moreover, the military has already made it clear that the Army was "absolutely not" part of what happened in the National Assembly.
Pakistan's Supreme Court on Tuesday resumed the hearing on the case filed by the joint Opposition over the dismissal of a no-confidence vote against Prime Minister Imran Khan and the subsequent dissolution of Parliament by the president, a day after adjourning the proceedings after promising to give a "reasonable order" in the high-profile case.
The apex court had taken a suo motu cognizance of the current political situation in the country.
A five-member bench headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial began proceedings at noon.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Raza Rabbani and senior counsel Makhdoom Ali Khan presented their arguments before the court.
Rabbani said that the court had to examine the extent of the "immunity" of parliamentary proceedings.
"Whatever has happened can only be termed as civilian martial law," he said.
He maintained that the speaker's ruling was "illegal", Dawn news reported.
"The no-confidence motion can't be dismissed without voting on it," he said, citing Article 95 of the Constitution.
Rabbani also said that a deliberate attempt was made to construct a narrative against the no-trust move while a foreign conspiracy was also touted. The court is likely to announce its decision today.
If Khan gets a favourable ruling, elections will take place within 90 days.
If the court rules against the deputy speaker, the parliament will reconvene and hold the no-confidence vote against Khan, experts said.
President Arif Alvi had dissolved the National Assembly (NA) on the advice of Prime Minister Khan, minutes after Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri rejected a no-confidence motion against the premier, who had effectively lost the majority in the 342-member lower house of Parliament on Sunday.
Chief Justice Ata Bandial had said that all orders and actions initiated by the prime minister and the president regarding the dissolution of the National Assembly will be subject to the court's order.
On Monday, the larger bench of the apex court - comprising Chief Justice Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail - took up the matter after Deputy Speaker Suri rejected the move to dislodge the prime minister by declaring the no-trust motion unmaintainable due to its link with a so-called foreign conspiracy.
President Alvi, the Supreme Court Bar Association and all political parties have been made respondents in the case.
Lawyers from the government and opposition presented their argument regarding the ruling by the deputy speaker.
Chief Justice Bandial had earlier Monday said the court would issue a "reasonable order" on the issue on Monday.
During the hearing on Monday, Chief Justice Bandial said that even if the Speaker of the National Assembly cites Article 5 of the Constitution, the no-confidence motion cannot be rejected, Geo News reported.
During the proceedings, Justice Ahsan noted that there were violations in the proceedings of the no-trust resolution, Dawn reported.
Justice Bandial observed that a debate before voting on the no-confidence motion had been clearly mentioned in the law but didn't take place.
Justice Akhtar expressed dubiousness over the deputy speaker's constitutional authority to pass such a ruling, the paper said.
"In my opinion," he said, "only the speaker had the right to pass the ruling.
"The deputy speaker chairs the session on the non-availability of the speaker."
Justice Bandial also observed that the deputy speaker's ruling mentioned the meeting of the parliamentary committee for security.
"The opposition deliberately didn't attend the meeting," he said.
Farooq H Naek, who was representing the joint opposition, pleaded with the court to issue a verdict on the matter on Monday.
But Justice Ahsan said it was impossible to pass the verdict on Monday, adding that the apex court's decision will have far reaching outcomes.
"We can't pass a decision in the air," Justice Bandial said, adjourning the hearing till Tuesday.
He had also rejected the opposition's plea for a full bench.
"The court will hear all representatives of the parties before concluding the hearing," the chief justice said during the hearing.
The decision of the court would also determine the legality of the presidential order to dissolve the National Assembly.
However, opposition parties rejected both the ruling of the deputy speaker and the dissolution of the parliament, and not only challenged it in court but also fought tooth and nail outside the Supreme Court.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shehbaz Sharif at a press conference accused Prime Minister Khan of violating the constitution and imposing a civil-martial law in the country.
Pakistan's National Security Advisor Moeed Yusuf resigned on Monday amid the ongoing political and constitutional crisis in the coup-prone country.
"Today, I leave extremely satisfied and content, most of all because I know that the NSA's office and the NSD are vibrant institutions with an exceptional team that will continue to make Pakistan proud," he tweeted.
He thanked Prime Minister Imran Khan and all others who allowed the office of the National Security Advisor and the National Security Division/Strategic Policy Planning Cell to contribute to the national cause.
"Few individuals are fortunate enough to get an opportunity to serve their country in a high office. Even fewer get to do so at my age. By the grace of Allah, not only did I receive this honour, but it has been an incredible two-and-a-half-year journey that I will always cherish," he said in a series of tweets.
His resignation comes a day after President Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly, minutes after National Assembly Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri dismissed the opposition's no-confidence motion against embattled Prime Minister Khan on Sunday.