Rawalpindi, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Friday strongly castigated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his party’s “anti-army’s rhetoric”, terming him a “mentally ill person, whose conduct had become a “serious national security threat”.

Addressing an over two-hour-long press conference, the military’s spokesperson slammed the ousted prime minister for working with “external elements, spreading disinformation, provoking unrest and persistently targeting the armed forces”.

“The headquarters of the Chief of Defence Forces has been inaugurated,” the ISPR chief said hours after the Ministry of Defence issued an official notification for the appointment of Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir as the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF).

The ISPR chief said today’s briefing was aimed at outlining internal national security challenges, saying that nothing is above the state of Pakistan.

Without naming anyone, Lt Gen Chaudry referred to the jailed PTI founder saying: “His ego and desires have grown to such an extent that he says if not me, then nothing.”

Describing what he called a “delusional mindset” of a “person captive of his own thoughts,” Lt Chaudhry said that the narrative promoted by a particular political figure has “evolved into a national security threat”.

The DG ISPR said the jailed party’s founder’s narrative has become a threat to Pakistan’s national security.

The ISPR DG said that anyone who attacks the armed forces or its leadership is effectively “creating space for another army”.

Lt Gen Chaudhry asserted that the PTI founder keeps the Constitution, the law and established rules aside while promoting this narrative.

“Under which law or Constitution do you meet a convicted individual?,” the DG ISPR asked, adding that this person sends a narrative against the military and its leadership out of the prison whenever a meeting is held.

Declaring ex-PM Khan “mentally ill”, he questioned what kind of Constitution and law was it under which you meet a convicted person.

“You meet a convict and he creates a narrative against the army and its leadership.”

“We respect Pakistan’s political leadership but keep the army away from your politics,” the military’s spokesperson said, adding that: “We will not allow anyone to create a rift between Pakistan’s army and the people”.

“We will not allow you to incite the people against the army,” Lt Gen Chaudhry remarked.

Noting that the freedom of expression is allowed under Article 19 of the Constitution, the ISPR DG said that it carries certain restrictions with it as well and does not permit anyone to speak against the state and national security.

Lt Gen Chaudhry said the “mentally disturbed individual” had recently posted a tweet and asked his supporters to target military leadership that stood firm against an enemy eight times stronger in the Operation Bunyamum Marsoos.

“There is an entire science behind this,” the ISPR DG said.

Attack on army will be responded to
First, he creates a narrative for the cessation of the remittances so that Pakistan defaults, then he goes on to call for targeting of the army’s leadership, which stood against an army which is eight times stronger in Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos.

“When you ask his party, they say that we do not know where the narrative comes from,” the military’s spokesperson said, further noting that: “This mentally ill person two days ago [also]”.

“A person who thinks that nothing is above his own self, even Pakistan, has [in fact] become a national security threat,” the general warned, saying that “this person is working with external elements”.

“If someone attacks the Pakistan Army, then we will also respond.”

Working alongside external elements
Referring to the social media post concerned, he also shed light on how the Indian media and troll accounts, operating from outside Pakistan, pick up on this narrative.

“Accounts come after the tweet in a sequential manner [….] The original narrative was given by this mental patient by tweeting.”

“Uzma Khan is sitting on the Indian media and telling PTI to attack,” Lt Gen Chaudhry highlighted.

The ISPR DG said that the individual is “working alongside external elements,” and cautioned that anyone attacking Pakistan’s Armed Forces “under their own political mindset” should expect a response.

The ISPR DG said that whenever people meet the political figure, “he propagates a narrative against the state of Pakistan and the military.”

According to the DG ISPR, the former premier has now become a national security threat and is working in coordination with external elements.

Reaffirming the institution’s stance, he said, “We are the armed forces of Pakistan and do not represent any political ideology.” He added that if anyone attacks the Pakistan Army based on their personal beliefs, “we will respond”.

The ISPR DG said propaganda had been spread over the notification of the CDF, describing it as “a flood of lies”. He questioned what kind of politics of freedom of expression it was.

“Please grow up. Talk about real issues,” he said, adding that even routine military news was being used to generate propaganda.

Continuing his remarks, the DG ISPR said that Afghan social media was also actively involved in amplifying the narrative of this individual.

Giving another recent example, the general said this individual had claimed that anyone from his own party who visited the National Defence University (NDU) would be a traitor. “According to his logic, anyone who goes to ISPR is also a traitor,” he added.

Referring to the political figure, Lt Gen Chaudhary said: “Who are you? Whose language are you speaking? What do you think of yourself?”

The DG ISPR said that the public had already witnessed the “symptoms of a disturbed mindset”.

He asked whether the individual had not previously instigated the May 9 attack on the General Headquarters (GHQ).

“This person believes that anyone serving in the Pakistan Army is a traitor,” the DG ISPR asserted, adding that this person considers himself to be the only one who is right and believes everyone else is wrong.

He questioned why this individual did not speak about Pakistan’s significant issues.

“Three days ago, they repeated their narrative of dialogue with the terrorists. They pushed the line that intelligence-based operations should not be carried out,” he added.

“By the logic of this mentally disturbed individual, if India had attacked, he would have walked around with a begging bowl saying, ‘Come, let’s talk.'”

The DG ISPR noted that the PTI founder was the same person “who suggested opening an office for khawarij in Peshawar”.

“This obsession with talks is not new for him,” the DG ISPR said, adding that the former premier provokes people to stand against operations.

“We are absolutely clear that his politics or his personality cannot be above the state,” he stressed.

“This is a mental disorder — this is a terror-crime nexus. It involves drugs, NCP, kidnapping for ransom and several other things.”

The DG ISPR cautioned that anyone who stands against the political terror-crime nexus could face orchestrated attacks.