Islamabad
Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal fiercely attacked former Prime Minister Imran Khan. He claimed that China had warned the Pakistan Army about any new experiment in the 2018 general elections. He also strongly criticized the previous Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led government for sabotaging the $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.
Speaking on the Geo News programme, Iqbal said, China had diplomatically tried to send a message to the then-army chief that any kind of experiment could derail the CPEC project. agency
Iqbal retracted his statement on Sunday. A statement saying that his TV interview about China was wrongly referenced. China does not interfere in the domestic affairs of other countries. Some businessmen working on CPEC projects thought that free and fair elections would be in the interest of Pakistan.
Beijing warned the Pakistani army not to interfere in the elections, saying that it would not benefit Pakistan and destroy the CPEC project. The then army chief had assured China that whoever comes to power would not come in the way of the project.
It is noteworthy that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Imran Khan became the PM after this election. The opposition has been alleging that Imran became the PM with the help of the army. Iqbal accused PTI leader Imran of conspiring against the project. He said that allegations of corruption were made against the project, which was widely published by the Western media.
