DG ISPR General Babar Iftikhar during a press conference said that a full impartial investigation will be conducted in the Arshad Sharif murder case.
On Thursday, DG ISPR referred to Sharif as an “icon of journalism in Pakistan” and called his passing an “unfortunate tragedy.” He mentioned that the late journalist’s family included military veterans and said he had always understood the suffering of martyred officers.
Gen. Iftikhar continued by stating that Sharif’s reputation as an investigative journalist stemmed from the fact that he produced several programs on the topic after the cypher was revealed, which PTI head Imran Khan claimed to be proof of a foreign plot to overthrow his government.
“ARY News played the part of a spin doctor in this media trial, attacking the army and spreading a false narrative… the NSC meeting was portrayed in the improper context.”
He acknowledged that Sharif had made harsh remarks about the army at the time, but he said that “we didn’t feel bad about him then, and we don’t feel bad about him today.”
According to information provided by the DG ISPR, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administration, acting on the orders of Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, issued a threat letter on August 5 stating that a Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) breakaway group was planning to attack Sharif.
The institutions that gave them the information were not given any information in this regard.
This demonstrates that the terror warning was issued to compel Sharif to leave the nation, according to Gen. Iftikhar.
“There were rumours that Sharif didn’t want to leave the nation, but he was constantly reminded that his life was in danger.”
He continued by saying that after Shahbaz Gill’s comments on ARY News on August 8 disparaging the nation’s institutions, the lawmaker was detained the following day.
He said that after that ARY CEO Salman Iqbal urged Ammad Yousuf, who was detained in August, to move Sharif abroad as quickly as possible.
According to the DG ISPR, Sharif’s flight to Dubai was arranged by a manager at the ARY Group, and he was scheduled to return on September 9.
“He departed Peshawar Airport by PK-637 for Dubai on August 10. He received full protocol from the KP government.” He said that KP officials had escorted the deceased journalist to the airport.
“Arshad stayed in the UAE till his visa as applicable. When his visa for Dubai expired, he went to Kenya.”
He said that no one in the government “pushed” Sharif to leave Dubai and he questioned just who did. He also demanded to know who processed the journalist’s paperwork in the UAE, took care of his lodging, coerced him into staying in Kenya rather than returning to Pakistan, and assured him.
“The Kenyan police admitted their error, and it has to be investigated to see if this was a case of mistaken identity or deliberate homicide. Many concerns need to be addressed, he added, urging an “open and impartial investigation.”
Therefore, he continued, a high-level inquiry committee has been requested from the government.
The DG ISPR continued by stating that the ARY CEO’s name kept coming up. “He should be brought to Pakistan and included in the investigation.”
He said that following Sharif’s passing, the army had come under fire. “It needs to be established precisely who benefited from his murder.”
Now it’s up to you to find out the truth and make it public. We must wait for the inquiry commission’s report. It is not proper to level accusations before the report is made public.
