No decision on snap polls yet: Iqbal

LAHORE: Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal on Monday said Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan had been spreading “mischief” in the country since 2014.

Speaking to the press in Lahore, he said that the coalition government had not yet decided on the date of elections.

“We will announce the polls after taking the nation into confidence,” he said.

Iqbal, a senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), alleged Khan’s team was busy spreading propaganda to create discord between state institutions, government, and the public.

“If you look at Imran’s politics, you will see that he is also using tools of hybrid warfare against Pakistan,” he said.

The minister also asserted that Khan’s style of politics was not only objectionable but also hurt the sovereignty and integrity of the nation. “His politics is unacceptable in a country which is an atomic power,” he declared.

His comments came a day after the former prime minister announced the date of the much-hyped march to Islamabad to demand the dissolution of assemblies and a date for elections.

“I will meet you in Islamabad at Srinagar Highway on May 25,” Khan told a media conference on Sunday.

Commenting on the so-called Azadi March, Iqbal said the government of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) parties believed in democracy and respected the right to protest.

“Whatever Imran Khan does within the boundaries of the law and Constitution will be acceptable to the government.”

However, if the law was violated, then the government would find ways in the Constitution to deal with the protesters, he warned.

Khan has been holding rallies around the country following his ouster, blaming the United States for conspiring against his government.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government is yet to implement economic policies such as curtailing costly energy subsidies, which were introduced by Khan’s government in his last days in power as he faced mounting pressure over rising inflation.

“No matter how long it takes we will stay in Islamabad until our demands of dissolution of assemblies and date of free and fair elections are announced,” Khan, flanked by his close associates, told reporters.

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