‘No time for your allegations’: PM Shehbaz and Imran take beef to social media

Published September 13, 2022
A combination photo of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (R) and PTI chairperson Imran Khan (L). — DawnNewsTV/Reuters
A combination photo of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (R) and PTI chairperson Imran Khan (L). — DawnNewsTV/Reuters

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said the government was busy rehabilitating flood victims and did not have time for PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s “accusations and misunderstandings”.

A day ago, the PTI chief had asked the prime minister on Twitter if he was responsible for a string of recent alleged actions against the PTI, including silencing it on the media, registering cases against pro-PTI journalists, “blacking it out” on social media or stopping the telecast of the party’s flood donation telethon.

“We know that your criminal followers and their patrons are afraid of the PTI’s popularity. If you are not responsible for usurping our constitutional rights and deviating from international commitments regarding freedom of expression and press, then it is your responsibility to tell the nation who is responsible for all this,” Imran had said.

Replying directly to Imran today, PM Shehbaz said: “Our government is currently busy with the rehabilitation of the flood victims, so there is no time for your accusations and misunderstandings.”

He expressed hope that the PTI chief would give an account of “every single penny” raised in the telethon as well as the donations gathered during the 2010 floods as “I and my colleagues have always given”.

Regarding Imran’s allegations of suppressive actions, Shehbaz said such methods and restrictions were the “PTI’s tactics and not ours”. “We are only following the path of the law and the Constitution,” he added.

A day ago, the PTI had slammed the government for allegedly blocking the transmission of the telethon that the party had arranged on Sunday night for collecting donations from overseas Pakistanis and announced its decision to challenge the government’s move before the Islamabad High Court.

Opinion

Editorial

Token austerity
Updated 11 Mar, 2026

Token austerity

The ‘austerity’ measures are a ritualistic response to public anger rather than a sincere attempt to reform state spending.
Lebanon on fire
11 Mar, 2026

Lebanon on fire

WHILE the entire Gulf region has become an active warzone, repercussions of this conflict have spread to the...
Canine crisis
11 Mar, 2026

Canine crisis

KARACHI’S stray dog crisis requires urgent attention. Feral canines can cause serious and lasting physical and...
Iran’s new leader
Updated 10 Mar, 2026

Iran’s new leader

The position is the most powerful in Iran, bringing together clerical authority and political and ideological leadership.
National priorities
10 Mar, 2026

National priorities

EVEN as the country faces heightened risks of attacks from actual terrorists, an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi...
Silenced march
10 Mar, 2026

Silenced march

ON the eve of International Women’s Day, Islamabad Police detained dozens of Aurat March activists who had ...