Nawaz Sharif slams Pervez Musharraf for Kargil war; claims 'Pak jawans were sent unarmed'

Addressing the third Opposition rally in Pakistan's Quetta in Balochistan district on Sunday, former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif lashed out at his successor General Pervez Musharraf for his decisions which led to Pakistan's defeat in the Kargil war in 1999. Sharif, who addressed the rally via video link from London, claimed that some in the Pakistan Army had picked a fight in the snow-capped mountains in Kargil, where there was no chance of victory, leaving jawans unarmed. This is the third rally by the Sharif-led 11 opposition parties under the name 'Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)', against PM Imran Khan and his 'military-led' establishment.

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Sharif: 'Pak Jawan sent unarmed into Kargil war'

"There are some who are breaking the country, community, commit crimes under the guise of the Pakistan Army. While these people are not related to our brave Army, I name them - so that my country's Army is not defamed. There were some characters from the Army, who were involved in my ouster. In Kargil, the decision to defame the Pakistan Army and sacrifice many jawans was not of the Army, just a few culprits. They tangled us in a fight in such a place that there was no possibility of victory. I was shocked to know that our jawans were not given arms at those cold mountains," said Sharif.

Lashing out at Musharaf's crimes, Sharif held him responsible for his ouster, the military coup, Benazir Bhutto's assassination and rampant corruption. He stated that Imran Khan and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) did not have the guts to prosecute Musharraf. Recently, the anti-corruption bureau approved a new case against Sharif after his Gujranwala rally, where he lashed out at Imran Khan. Days before the July 2018 general elections, Sharif was convicted in the Avenfield properties case and sentenced to 10 years in prison. He had been ousted from power in 2017 and was later granted bail by the Islamabad High Court.

"Those behind the Kargil war were the same who did a coup and installed a martial law on 12 October 1999, to hide their actions and escape the punishment. Pervez Musharraf and some of his friends, who misused the Army for their own benefit. These people were named by Benazir Bhutto for her murder in her letter. These people are responsible for all the misfortunes of Balochistan," he said.

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Naming top Pakistan Army Generals again, he added, "There is proof that Pervez Musharraf's bank accounts have crores of rupees, but Imran Khan and NAB do not have the guts to do investigation on it. It was not the Army's decision to install a puppet government, but a few characters. The answers asked must not be answered by the Army, but by General Qamar Bajwa, General Faiz Hamid".

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Quetta rally attendees

Prior to the commencement of the rally, after Pakistan government's security alert, mobile phone services had been suspended and  Section-144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) was also imposed in Quetta. The rally was also addressed by  Qaumi Watan Party chairperson Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao, PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman in person while Pakistan Peoples Party chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Sharif addressed virtually. This the third rally after Gujranwala and Karachi and the first one where both Sharif and Bhutto have addressed the common people. The PDM has launched a three-phased anti-government movement under an “action plan” starting with countrywide public meetings, protest demonstrations and rallies before a “decisive long march” towards Islamabad in January 2021 to oust the Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) government.

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