File photo of PTI chief Imran Khan
The banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Wednesday issued a rejoinder to claims by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan that “people from South Waziristan” have been tasked with assassinating him.
Speaking with party leaders at his residence in Lahore’s Zaman Park on Tuesday, Khan alleged that he had “proof” of the plan to assassinate him. He also claimed that his would-be assassins had already been paid in cash to achieve this goal.
Referring to the PTI chief’s allegations, TTP spokesman Mohammad Khurasani recalled that similar and “baseless” allegations had already been levelled by other leaders of the party. “This is all happening under the aegis of intelligence agencies and the Army, who want to achieve their goals by steering [Khan] into great difficulty on the one hand, and by spreading propaganda against the mujahideen on the other,” he wrote in a statement issued to media, alleging that “similarly loathsome” plots had been staged by agencies against several other politicians.
“The policy of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan is clear and has also been conveyed to the Pakistani people that its war is with the military and secret agencies,” he said. “We have already warned both political and non-political people that so long as they stay away from this war, they will not be targeted by us,” he added.