May 9 mastermind should be the first to get punished: Faisal Karim Kundi

Lahore: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi on Saturday said the May 9 mastermind should be the first to be punished, as he called for holding those accountable for the violence perpetrated on that day.

Talking to media persons at the mausoleum of Allama Iqbal, he said the PTI were not taking responsibility for the post shared on X and, at the same time, avoided deleting the same.

He was referring to the post shared on the official account of PTI founding chairman Imran Khan, in which he has been equated with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The latest remarks come after the military on Thursday again called for holding the planners, facilitators and executioners of May 9 violence accountable and warned that the country would remain hostage to the elements hatching conspiracies in case of a failure.

Kundi said the PTI was even distancing themselves from the person operating the X account, adding that they were in habit of committing the crime and resorting to wailing simultaneously.

They want to come into power yet again just like they had in the past, he remarked.

Kundi said they were ready if the PTI wanted to hold talks with the democratic forces, but he wasn’t in a position to say anything if the aim was to use the establishment’s shoulders to grab power again.

At the same time, he said that the Governor’s House won’t become part of any conspiracy and noted that if the PTI was a political party then it would have to hold talks with political parties.

Criticising the language used by Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, Kundi said no one could stop anyone from moving freely, but praised him for arguing his case with arguments at the Special Investment Facilitation Council meeting held earlier in the week.

However, he said that Gandapur, despite being one of the main culprits of May 9, had become the provincial chief minister.

About the latest drop in fuel prices where the directives issued by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif were ignored, Kundi said the rates had been slashed by Rs4 and a further cut of Rs15 would also take place.

Earlier on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar ruled out any talks with the elements involved in the May 9 incidents, as he told media persons that he believed in reconciliation and negotiations but May 9 was an uprising against the state.

“Position taken by the corps commanders at a recent meeting is stance of every Pakistani and there should be no concessions in this regard,” he added.