Written by Ishika Yadav | Edited by Swati Bhasin
Maryam Nawaz, daughter of former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, on Monday lashed out at Imran Khan for maligning a US diplomat in his speeches claiming ‘the hand of foreign powers’. She called the PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf) chief’s allegations of foreign conspiracy, which were linked to the fall of the government led by the cricketer-politician, “the biggest drama in the history of Pakistan.”
“Unfortunately, Pakistani politics have met a person who is the biggest liar, chaos-maker and imposter. He used to say to people that we are US slaves. He kept people busy with his conspiracy claims. This is the biggest drama in Pakistan’s history,” she was quoted as saying by local daily The Tribune. Maryam added that ousted PM Imran Khan has been “maligning US diplomat Donald Lu in his speeches.” However, two days ago, an official from Khan’s party “went to Lu and apologised” over the PTI chief’s remarks, she further said.
Earlier in March, Imran Khan had said that US envoy Donald Lu at a meeting with the Pakistani envoy threatened to oust his government. “The envoy confirmed the whole development through a cipher to the Foreign Office of Pakistan,” he was quoted as saying in reports . “We have all the details of the people who met the officials of the US consulate,” he added.
Maryam Nawaz Nawaz, crediting her father Nawaz Sharif during an election rally in Lahore, said that “Punjab was like an orphan during the PTI tenure. But now, the lion is back and Punjab will progress as it used to in the past,” local media outlets reported. She also hit out at the ousted premier for using a “religion card” and added that because of his irresponsible behaviour, people got shot.
The re-election for the Punjab’s Chief Minister’s position will be held on July 22.The incumbent chief minister – Hamza Sharif of the PML-N – will stay in office till then. Before that, the by-election for the 20 vacant seats of Punjab Assembly will be held on July 17.
(With inputs from ANI)
Less time to read?
Try Quickreads
-
Who is Robert Crimo? What we know about US parade shooting suspect | 5 points
The US law enforcement agencies on Tuesday announced they had captured a suspect named Robert Crimo in a shooting on Monday that killed six people and wounded more than 36 at a Fourth of July parade in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park. Those wounded ranged between the ages of 8 to 85. Who is Robert Crimo – person of interest in Highland Park shooting 1.
-
In July 4 US parade shooting, suspect held hours after 6 killed, dozens injured
Robert E Crimo III, a person of interest linked to a shooting in the United States that killed six people and wounded more than 36, has been held. This is the latest incident of gun violence rearing its ugly head in the country. Here are top updates on the latest shooting incident in the US: 1. In his first reaction, hours after the shooting, US president Joe Biden said he was shocked.
-
China scrambles to contain fresh Covid outbreak
A county in China’s eastern Anhui province is carrying out daily nucleic acid tests on 763,000 locked down residents while mass tests have been ordered for other areas, as authorities scramble to contain a fresh surge in Covid-19 cases in the country. For China, it will have to be a pragmatic balance between its avowed zero-Covid strategy – marked by lockdowns, large-scale testing campaigns and strict isolation protocols – and allowing normal economic activity.
-
Putin orders Russians to fight on after key Ukraine city falls
President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered Russian troops to press their offensive deeper into the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine after Moscow’s forces seized the strategic city of Lysychansk. In a sign there would be no let-up in the fighting and that Russia now had its eyes on the entire Donetsk region, Putin told Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu that troops stationed there must continue their operations.
-
On July 4 parade shooting, Biden pledges to find gunman who killed 6: ‘Shocked’
President Joe Biden said he spoke with officials in Illinois after a mass shooting in a suburb of Chicago and pledged federal law enforcement assistance in finding the gunman. Six were killed and dozens injured in an attack on an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s office. The suspect remained at large as of late afternoon on Monday.