Islamabad: In a major faux pas, Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif was left battling a rather embarrassing episode of ‘foot-in-mouth’ disease after being questioned over his claims about former prime minister Imran Khan’s social media activity.
During an interview with journalist Mehdi Hasan, Asif claimed that former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan was personally operating his Twitter account from inside Adiala Jail, where he was imprisoned in August 2023.
However, Asif was caught on the wrong foot when Hasan questioned him over his statement on a previous occasion when he had claimed that Imran Khan’s social media accounts were being operated from India.
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Asked to explain his contradictory statements on the issue, Khawaja Asif was left visibly flustered.
“He is operating a Twitter account from the jail cell,” Asif initially said.
Hasan interjected: “You said he was operating from India the other day… You said India is controlling his Twitter account… You just made two different allegations. Is it Imran in his prison cell or is it India?”
An unsettled Asif responded: “Either he is operating from the cell or he should at least identify who is operating the jail cell.” He went on to cite “intelligence sources” as the basis for his claims but refused to offer any evidence.
“The evidence I cannot publicly disclose,” Asif said. When Hasan asked why he would make such an allegation without proof, Asif replied bluntly: “No, because it is there.” Pressed further, he conceded, “Yes, based on, obviously, intelligence. Nobody is stating it openly.”
