Former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that the purpose of amendments in the Official Secrets Act is not to target any political party but to protect the lives of intelligence personnel.
In an interview to The Guardian before stepping down as prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif said the amendments were not aimed at curtailing civil liberties but protecting the lives and identity of security personnel investigating terrorists.
“I don’t think these laws will be against my party or anyone else, I don’t really see anything to worry about it,” he said.
Shehbaz Sharif also criticized his political rival PTI Chairman Imran Khan, but he said that he did not want to take revenge against him on the basis of any personal enmity.
Claiming that political rivals were mistreated during Imran Khan’s tenure, he made it clear that the term “atrocities” by specifically targeting someone does not exist in my dictionary.
Shehbaz Sharif said that when Imran Khan was the Prime Minister, we were abused and violated the jail rules, we became a victim of all this, but we do not believe that equal treatment should be given in response.
Shehbaz Sharif accused Imran Khan of distorting facts regarding the cipher sent by former Pakistani ambassador to the US Asad Majeed Khan.
He said the cipher did not mention any conspiracy to topple the PTI government or bring the PDM alliance to power.
He said that it is highly inappropriate for any political leader with a serious mind to get involved in such a white lie, Imran Khan had said that he had a copy of the cipher but he has lost it, now the text of this cipher has been published on a website.
Talking about the possibility of a ban on PTI, Shahbaz Sharif said that I do not really know anything about it, it is all the decision of the court, and personally I do not want any political party to be banned.
