Former army chief General (retired) Qamar Javed Bajwa on Friday termed the allegations of Bushra Bibi, the wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, against Saudi Arabia as “baseless”.
“National interests should not be harmed to gain political mileage by making baseless allegations,” the former army chief said
A day earlier, Bushra Bibi issued a rare video message ahead of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI), accusing Saudi Arabia of being involved in ousting her husband’s government.
She alleged that when the former prime minister went to Madina “barefoot”, the then-army chief Gen (retd) started receiving “their calls”, implying that the Saudi officials had a role in his ouster.
The former first lady claimed that Bajwa was asked, “Who is this person you have brought with you […] we don’t want such personalities.” “Since then, they launched a smear campaign against us and started calling Imran a Jewish agent,” she alleged.
The statement drew strong backlash from government officials, calling it a “suicide attack” to harm friendly relations between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
Bushra Bibi accompanied Imran during the visits to Saudi Arabia from 2018 to 2021.
Refuting Bushra Bibi’s allegations about the Saudi government’s role in her husband’s ouster, Gen (retd) Bajwa — in a statement issued today —said that Saudi Arabia was Pakistan’s “friend and benefactor”.
“The kingdom has extended all-out support to Pakistan throughout history, including during PTI’s tenure,” he said, adding that the former first lady’s remarks were “totally baseless”.
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