In multiple messages both to his corps commanders, especially the upstart former ISI chief Lt. Gen. Faiz Hamid, and the raucous hordes of Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, Pak army Chief, Qamar Javed Bajwa has declared that he is boss, and the simmering rebellion against him must end.
Amid the speculations of differences between the former ISI chief Lt General Faiz Hameed and the Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the military establishment has declared that there is a planned propaganda campaign to create division between military, society and the various institution but the “Pakistan army has always stood by the state institutions to guard them.”
This was the first time when Gen. Bajwa came out openly since the ouster of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
“Pakistan Army is aware of its responsibilities and shall continue to defend territorial integrity and sovereignty of Pakistan against all internal and external threats under all circumstances,” the Bajwa announced, addressing a conference of corps commanders, formation commanders and principal staff officers of Pakistan Army at General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
The statement was made a day after the joint opposition ousted former premier Imran Khan through a no-confidence motion in the Pakistan National Assembly. Khan claimed that there was a foreign conspiracy for a regime change in Pakistan.
National Security of Pakistan is sacrosanct, the military’s media wing ISPR said in a statement.
“Pakistan Army has always stood by the state institutions to guard it and always will, without any compromise,” Bajwa told his commanders.
Army chief made clear that the army will defend Pakistan from any threat. This statement was made a day after the opposition ousted former premier Imran Khan who claimed that there was external pressure for regime change.
Visit: https://t.co/4ztmzOUafE#etribune #news #army pic.twitter.com/kbDxlC8oGU
— The Express Tribune (@etribune) April 12, 2022
Several posters in PTI protests today across the country show anger against #PakistanArmy chief General Bajwa for allegedly orchestrating @ImranKhanPTI's removal from office. Will the @OfficialDGISPR react? pic.twitter.com/qkVh7IVCk4
— Taha Siddiqui (@TahaSSiddiqui) April 11, 2022
The Pakistani army and its chief General Bajwa have come under criticism recently by Khan’s senior party members and supporters in the wake of Khan's ouster. Trends against the armed forces and its leadership have seen intense activity on social media platforms such as Twitter.
Protest in Qatar against removal of IK…All happened due to Bajwa…Bajwa should resign..itni gandi army ki and judges ki ho chukki hay kay sharam aatii hay abb#ImranKhan #imrankhanPTI #Pakistan #whataman #امپورٹڈ_گورمنٹ_نامنظور #dhivyadhuraisamy #DGISPR #BajwaSurrender pic.twitter.com/saABx0dOmY
— Sarmad (@Sarmadjavaid000) April 11, 2022
According to the ISPR , the military establishment has taken a serious note of the open castigation of the military, apparently led by the Khan and a cabal within the military leadership led by Lt. Gen. Hamid.
According to Pakistani media, the commanders say that the purpose of this propaganda is to create a gap between the society and the institution. They affirmed “complete confidence in the leadership’s well-considered stance to uphold the Constitution and rule of law at all costs".
According to Pakistani watchers, Bajwa briefed his corps commanders about his recent “interactions” with the former PM Imran Khan.
There were reports that on the night of April 9, Khan was mulling to replace Bajwa with his favourite Lt Gen Faiz Hameed but it was the ISI chief Lt. General Junaid Anjum who conveyed Khan that his time was up and warned him against doing any “misadventure”.
Without taking Hameed’s name, the opposition leaders also had been telling Bajwa that few of his generals are involved in a “conspiracy” to block the no-confidence vote and go for the dissolution of the National Assembly. They warned Bajwa they were Imran Khan loyalists and wanted to impose martial law in the country.
