Islamabad, May 23 : Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan claimed on Tuesday that members of his party are being forced to leave the PTI at “gunpoint”, media reports said.
Speaking informally to journalists at an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Islamabad, Khan said, “People are not leaving the party on their own, they are being forced to do so, and that too at gunpoint,” The Express Tribune reported.
However, the former premier maintained that he is not bothered by the several PTI leaders who have in recent days called it quits, saying that “parties never die down like that; they are weeded out like the [ruling coalition] PDM is eroding, the way their vote bank is depleting”.
“I am only worried about the workers, especially the women,” he added, The Express Tribune reported.
The PTI chief made these remarks ahead of his hearing at the ATC where judge Raja Jawad Abbas is hearing his petition for bail in eight different cases.
Khan was booked under terrorism charges over violence that ensued outside the judicial complex ahead of his hearing with regard to the Toshakhana case in April.
During the proceedings, Khan’s lawyer Salman Safdar told the court that his client faced security threats and for that reason, the Lahore ATC had granted him permission to have his statement recorded by the judicial investigation team (JIT) at his residence in Zaman Park.
“It is not that we do not wish to face these cases,” the lawyer argued.
“We are prepared to answer every question,” he added, saying that if the court permits, he would present his arguments for all cases in the next hearing, The Express Tribune reported. (IANS)