LAHORE: Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari on Tuesday chided the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) for skipping the meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, urging action against it for being an ‘anti-state party’.

“By boycotting the security moot, the PTI is giving more importance to politics than national security. International conspiracies against Pakistan are going on and the PTI is facilitating these efforts,” she told a press conference at the press club on Tuesday.

Ms Bokhari said the PTI had been hijacked by its overseas groups with some of its leaders maintaining contacts with the Indian lobby. Earlier, the Sharif family was accused of having good ties with the Indians.

Criticising the PTI’s leadership, she said even when Imran Khan was prime minister, he avoided attending national security meetings.

“Imran Khan considers himself superior to others and deliberately avoids attending national security meetings,” she said and added that terrorism was once again reemerging in Pakistan, necessitating strict counter measures.

The information minister said with increasing threat of terrorism, all political parties should unite but the PTI continued to prioritise its politics over national security.

“The PTI’s terrorist wing poses a severe threat to national security.”

She condemned the social media campaign on the Jaffar Express incident, insisting that terrorists should not be given any leniency. She said the PTI consistently refused to be a part of national consensus in the past and continued with the same approach today. She also said that certain individuals were working on the agenda of Pakistan’s enemies by attempting to spread chaos in the country. She called for strict action against terrorists under the National Action Plan. The minister said the international lobbying against Pakistan was ongoing with certain elements acting as facilitators.

“Only those seeking to harm Pakistan are questioning national security matters while patriotic leaders and citizens are ready to make any sacrifice for the country’s safety.”

She said PML-N President Nawaz Sharif was ready to play a positive role, prioritizing Pakistan’s interests above all else.

Speaking on the issue of Afghan refugees, she emphasized that they should return to their home country as Pakistan could no longer sustain the burden of hosting them.

Published in Dawn, March 19th, 2025