An audio clip is making rounds on social media that purportedly features a conversation between Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imraan Khan and his then principal secretary Azam Khan.
In the audio tape, it appears that Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf (PTI) party chairman, Imraan Khan is talking about how to exploit the controversial code to portray his removal as the Prime Minister of Pakistan in April as a conspiracy.
Imraan Khan was ousted from power in April after he lost a no-confidence vote for which he blames the US government, stating that it was the US conspiracy behind targeting him due to his independent foreign policy resolution on China, Russia, and Afghanistan.
Donald Lu, the US Assistant Secretary of State for Central and South Asia, was the focal point of Khan’s allegations of a US-backed plot to overthrow the current government.
He said Lu had warned Asad Majeed, Pakistan’s former ambassador to the US, that failing to remove Khan via a vote of no confidence would result in “consequences” for both Pakistan and the US.
In the leaked audio tape, Khan can be heard saying, “ We only have to play on this (cypher). We don’t have to name [any country]. We only have to play with this, that this date (of no-trust motion) was [decided] before (it was moved against him)”
The other voice heard is apparently Azam Khan who is suggesting a meeting on the cypher.
“See, if you recall, in that the ambassador has written in the end to [send] a demarche. Even if the demarche is not to be sent, as I have thought a lot about it at night — you said they raised it — I thought about how to cover all this.
“Let’s hold a meeting with Shah Mahmood Qureshi (who was the foreign minister in Imran’s government) and the foreign secretary. Shah Mahmood Qureshi will read out that letter and whatever he reads out will be converted into a copy. I will then make minutes [out of it and say] that the foreign secretary has prepared this.
“But its (cypher’s) analysis will have to be conducted here. We will carry out the analysis and convert it into minutes as we want so that it becomes [part of] the official record,” the former principal secretary can be heard saying.
Azam Khan further explains that the analysis would settle that ‘it is a threat. It is called a threat in diplomatic language.’
The US has denied of any role in Imraan’s ouster and it appears that cricketer turned politician used the cypher to portray his downfall as a conspiracy by the US so that a narrative could be set in the public domain.
Read more: IAS officer’s impudent reply on demand for Sanitary pad
