As floods wreak havoc on large parts of Punjab, including Lahore, some netizens have shared an old video of then-prime minister Imran Khan backing the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project.

 

In the now viral video, Imran Khan can be heard saying that the objective of the project was to curb the expansion of Lahore. “If Lahore continues to expand, then the water table will continue to recede,” he says in the video. 

 

He can further be heard arguing that Ravi-river is in the process of drying up, which would turn it into a sewage drain, gesturing towards the water behind him. “It will be a modern city which will be constructed at par with Dubai and Malaysia and will expand vertically.”

 

While rivers, including the Ravi, swelled in the wake of the unprecedented monsoon this year and submerged many nearby villages and housing societies, users blamed the Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government for advocating the need for a new city on the riverfront.

 

A user, while highlighting the deteriorated situation on the bank of Ravi, shared the January 2022 video of Imran Khan on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday. “It’s the sheer confidence with which he utters absolute nonsense, Imran Khan, the ultimate Mr. Know-It-All,” he captioned, accompanied by the alarm emoji.

 

Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) top brass Khawaja Asif, was quick to react to the video, writing, “Everywhere, every fool thinks that he knows everything. He [Imran khan] should be shown today’s Ravi’s video and asked. And the ignorant person also gives long, long lectures (sic).”

 

“Imran Khan called the Ravi City project one of the biggest mega projects in Pakistan’s history, claiming it would save Lahore from unplanned urban sprawl, revive River Ravi, and raise the water table,” wrote another user.

 

One of the users alleged, “Imran Khan was the biggest supporter of the RUDA project and had the biggest hand in starting these housing societies.”

 

Another user said, “Imran Khan had himself launched the RUDA project, also showed concern over the Supreme Court’s decision.”

 

It merits a mention that in August 2020, the then-premier Imran Khan had laid the foundation stone of the controversial real estate project, which is continuing in the PML-N-led provincial government.

 

RUDA is responsible for developing a new city along the banks of the Ravi. Empowered by provincial legislation, RUDA has, over time, become a contentious body and has been dragged through the courts more than once.