Information Minister Atta Tarar announced on Monday that the government has decided to ban Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party. This decision follows the Supreme Court’s ruling in favour of PTI regarding reserved seats and party chief Khan’s acquittal in the Iddat case.
The Supreme Court’s judgement positions PTI to emerge as the single largest party in the National Assembly, threatening the ruling coalition’s two-thirds majority. During a press conference in Islamabad, Tarar emphasised that the country’s progress is incompatible with PTI’s continued existence.
Tarar cited multiple reasons for the ban, including the foreign funding case, the May 9 riots, and the cipher episode. He referred to the resolution passed in the US and asserted that there is credible evidence supporting the move to ban PTI.
“In view of the foreign funding case, May 9 riots, and the cipher episode, as well as the resolution passed in the US, we believe that there is very credible evidence to have the PTI banned,” he stated.
Tarar accused PTI of jeopardising Pakistan’s diplomatic relations for political gains. He pointed to the manipulation of the cipher saga, where former Pakistani ambassador to the US, Asad Majeed, clarified that there was no threat, yet PTI insisted that the country was in danger.
“You tried to damage the country’s diplomatic relations for the sake of your political interests and went on to get a resolution passed against Pakistan in the US,” Tarar accused.
The information minister laid out the government’s stance clearly: “Thus, [a case against] foreign funding is established, the attacks of May 9 are established, the cipher case is established, the resolution in the US is established; therefore, the federal government has decided that, in view of all the evidence, we will move a case to ban the PTI.”
In addition to the ban, Tarar announced that the government would submit a review petition before the Supreme Court of Pakistan against its recent verdict, which declared PTI eligible for reserved seats for women and minorities.