'No vendetta': May 9 rioters to be held accountable: PM Shehbaz

-- Claims former DG-ISI transferred for highlighting corruption of Imran’s wife

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that there was no vendetta in his heart but contended that those involved in the May 9 rioters would be taken to the court of law and held accountable.

"If leniency is done in this, this country won’t last," the premier said while addressing a session of the National Assembly.

"This is an incident which is out of our control and is the mandate of the public. Day and night lies on lies were said and the fallacy of a conspiracy by the US was sown in the minds of people."

"But today, phone calls are being made to the same country. But, our foreign relations were destroyed," PM Shehbaz decried, referring to PTI chief Imran Khan’s "baseless accusations against the US".

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has claimed that he was not aware of the arrest warrants issued by the National Accountability Bureau for PTI Chairman Imran Khan.

“But as the result of it, the destruction that ensued in the country, we have never seen such incidents before.”

“But is Rs60 billion a normal thing? Here, the entire opposition was pushed against the wall because of fake cases but not even a single pot was broken,” the premier said.

“This Rs60 billion didn’t come to the national exchequer but went to some account in the Supreme Court […] this is straight corruption and the cabinet of at the time approved a sealed envelope.”

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has claimed that incumbent army chief General Asim Munir was transferred from the post of DG ISI in 2019 because he had highlighted the corruption of PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s wife.

“I say this with full responsibility that incumbent army chief Gen Syed Asim Munir when he was DG ISI, he told PM Imran that his wife was involved in corruption. He said this on the basis of facts.

“But obviously Imran got furious over it and did not like it. And the rest is history,” the premier said.

“Today I would like to say that Imran Khan has betrayed the nation by sprouting a lie. This is the reason why the former DG ISI was transferred … it was because he confronted the then-PM that his family members were involved in corruption.”

No new laws being introduced to try May 9 accused

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has clarified that the rioters of the May 9 events will be tried under the existing laws, asserting that “no new laws are being introduced”.

“In Mianwali, military planes were bought from the hard earnings of the nation to fight the enemy … but a crowd went there to set fire to it.

“Aren’t they enemies of the state? Hence all the cases of the attacks on military installations will be filed under the army laws.”