Imran Khan should stay within limits or govt will make life difficult for his followers: JUI-F chief

Islamabad [Pakistan], July 22 (ANI): Jamiat Ulema-e Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Thursday alleged that former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came to power to destroy the country and warned that Imran should stay within limits otherwise the coalition government will make life tough for his 'youthias' (inexperienced followers), local media reported.
Fazlur Rehman was addressing a press conference in the Mewakhel area where he said that for the safety and integrity of Pakistan, it was necessary to oust Imran Khan.
"The end of Khan's government was not the end of the government; instead, it was important for saving the country. He wanted to divide Pakistan into three pieces but we jumped in and saved the country from disintegration," Fazlur Rehman said.
He said the PTI was celebrating victory in the Punjab by-polls but at the same time, it was terming the chief election commissioner (CEC) partisan and questioned why the verdict in the foreign funding case was being delayed, the News International reported.
JUI-F chief further said that the courts had the powers to deliver justice but they could not take the rights and powers of the parliament. "The coalition partners wanted to run the federal government with mutual consultation to steer the country out of crises," he added.
Opposition Leader in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, Akram Khan Durrani was also present at the conference, the News International reported.
Expressing concern over the killing of JUI-F leaders in North Waziristan, Fazlur Rehman said "We express profound grief over the killing of our activists in North Waziristan and elsewhere. The tribal people have become refugees in their own country despite rendering great sacrifices for restoration of lasting peace in the region."
He said that his party allowed the entry of security forces into the erstwhile Fata for the restoration of peace in the region.
"Over 5,000 tribespeople were martyred and hundreds of thousands displaced during the Zarb-e-Azb military operation against the militants in the tribal areas. We respect the institutions but the question arises as to why the tribal people are facing such a volatile situation despite restoration of peace," he added.
"On the one hand, madaris (seminaries) are being dubbed the hub of terror, on the other hand, their help is sought," he said.
Commenting on the PTI's criticism of the government, he said, "The ousted PTI-led government had created a crisis in the country in its four-year tenure and "everybody expects us to fix all issues in four months."
"The country was facing difficulties and there was no difference of opinion on this. There was a need to end discrimination in society," he said.
Rehman said that they had advised the government to put forward new conditions to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to stabilise the economy and price-hike and urged the government to take tangible steps for controlling inflation.
Notably, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on July 16 said that Pakistan will receive USD 1.7 billion tranches in the coming three to six weeks, after reaching the staff-level agreement earlier this week.
An extension of the EFF until the end of June 2023 and an augmentation of access by SDR 720 million bringing the total access to about USD 7 billion will be considered by the IMF board in order to support programme implementation and meet the higher financing needs in FY23, as well as catalyze additional financing.
The Pakistani rupee surpassed all prior records against the US dollar after hitting a fresh record low of PKR 228 against the dollar in the interbank market on Friday.
Analysts have said that the political uncertainty in the country due to the bypolls in Punjab and the delay in the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) programme has contributed to the slump of the Pakistani rupee.
Arif Habib Limited analyst Ahsan Mehnti is hopeful that the currency will recover soon as the IMF deal with the country will give it a "much-needed breather".
Since the beginning of this fiscal year (July 1, 2021) to date, the rupee has collectively dropped over 30.65 per cent (or PKR 48.29) compared to the previous fiscal year's close at PKR 157.54.
The rupee has maintained a downward trend for the last 13 months. It has lost over 33.20 per cent (or PKR 50.56) to date, compared to the record high of PKR 152.27 recorded in May 2021, reported Geo News. (ANI)