‘Appointing Buzdar was the real conspiracy’: Chaudhry Sarwar

Former Governor Chaudhry Sarwar in a hard-hitting press conference said, “All Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers in Punjab and the federal ministers complained to us whether this was the Pakistan that we wanted where the chief secretary and inspector general are changed every three months.”

Lashing out at PTI leadership, Sarwar criticised PM Khan’s choice of appointing Usman Buzdar as Chief Minister (CM) Punjab. “The premier believed that only Usman Buzdar could build the Naya Pakistan and other party leaders compromised,” he said.

“We said that we want to build Naya Pakistan and if Imran Khan thinks Usman Buzdar can do that, we are with him. But the entire country saw that chaos [subsequently] ensued in Punjab. Workers across Pakistan, federal [cabinet] members, [people] from Europe to the United Kingdom questioned if this was the Pakistan we voted for.”

“Imran Khan was on one side and the PTI on the other,” he said. Referring to the party’s claims that the no-confidence resolution against PM Imran was a “foreign conspiracy”, Sarwar said: “If there is an international conspiracy … the biggest conspiracy was making Usman Buzdar chief minister.”

Former governor said he had met PM Khan twice who told him to call the session after April 3 (today). “However, I did not inform PML-Q’s PTI-backed Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi because the talk with the premier was an amanat (secret) with me,” he added.

Sarwar also said that Elahi also visited him later to tell him it was important to hold elections before April 2 or he would not win. He added that he again went to the premier to express his reservations about Buzdar.

“I signed on the resignation in the dark of the night and they sacked me immediately,” he said, adding, “Pakistan is in a difficult phase right now.”

The federal government removed Chaudhry Sarwar from his post as Governor Punjab, appointing Omer Sarfraz Cheema as his replacement. Cheema has taken oath as the new Governor Punjab.