Kh Asif rejects PTI's criticism of Naqvi's appointment.

ISLAMABAD -- Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has rejected PTI's criticism on the appointment of caretaker Chief Minister Punjab Mohsin Naqvi and extended full support to him from PDM side and wished that under his leadership free and fair elections would be held in the province. Addressing a news conference here on Monday, Kh Asif said PTI chief Imran Khan was heading gradually towards a complete political failure as all his decisions were proving wrong and miscalculated.

He also welcomed the Election Commission of Pakistan's decision of appointing Mohsin Naqvi being taken as per law and said that the entire process was done according to the Constitution. The minister clarified that the nominees presented by PTI and others did not have good exercise as one of the nominees was a serving government employee and the other was a dual national.

'Their vetting was not good for these nominees. So that's why they had to face humiliation in this case,' he added. Moreover, the government's nominees had one former civil servant and one media personality, he said, adding, 'PTI also gave the name of another honourable bureaucrat who himself apologised to take the task. Hence the PTI's objection on Naqvi's appointment is a foul cry.' While clarifying the media over the allegations of the plea bargain against the interim Punjab chief minister, he said Naqvi's name was dragged into an issue of NAB plea bargain but the fact was that he had taken some loan from the accused in Haris Steel Mill Case in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

'Naqvi provided a cheque with a letter during the probe and returned the loan to the accused. A few news articles erroneously reported it as a matter of plea bargain whereas one letter could not be considered as a plea bargain. And, if he has done anything illegal then we are not going to defend him,' he added. The Minister said Naqvi was the coalition government's nominee and it was his right to defend him. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), he said it was propitious to have a unanimous nomination for KP interim Chief Minister. About the former Punjab Chief Minister Punjab, Asif said,

'However, Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and PTI had most of the objections. Elahi at this age has gone against all his relatives and may God bless him with a long life. He has gone against his eldest brother Chaudhary Shujat, and Naqvi is his son-in-law in relation. He must make efforts to unite them.' Commenting on the National Assembly (NA) situation, he...