Ilhan Omar’s meeting with Imran stirs controversy

ISLAMABAD: US Rep Ilhan Omar’s visit to Islamabad — the first by an American solon since the new government took office last week — was dominated by contestation over her meeting with ex-premier Imran Khan who claims Washington had conspired to dislodge his government.

Ms Omar met a range of Pakistani leaders, including President Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Khar and National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, but it was her meeting with Mr Khan that owned the limelight.

Former Mortal rights minister in Khan’s press, Dr Shireen Mazari, twittered about the meeting. “ US Senator Ilhan Omar called on Chairman PTI in Bani Gala. They bandied Islamophobia & affiliated issues.@Ilhan expressed her admiration for@ImranKhanPTI & his position on & work against Islamophobia encyclopedically. IK appreciated her valorous & principled position on issues,” Dr Mazari said.

Social media incontinently questioned Mr Khan about the meeting with the American solon and reminded him of his review of US officers meeting opposition numbers.

Not only intelligencers, ordinary tweeples and druggies of other social media platforms asked for the defense of the meeting, government functionaries also jumped into the debate and couldn’t repel criticising Mr Khan over it.

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah led the charge by asking Mr Khan if his meeting with Ms Omar was “ a conspiracy or hindrance”.

“ Which conspiracy is being incubated?” he asked while recalling Mr Khan’s station that opposition’s meetings with the American officers were conspiratorial. Warning of an disquisition into the meeting, the innards minister said that if Mr Khan didn’t himself discover the details, he (as the minister) “ will probe since the nation should know the verity, lest Imran Niazi, according to his tradition, brings out another letter a many days latterly”.

Omar, a Somali-American legislator representing Minnesota in the US House of Representatives, isn’t new to difficulties. This time it has got further to do with the timing of her visit, which took place when Mr Khan has drafted a narrative of conspiracy by the US around his junking from office through a vote of no- confidence in the National Assembly. Besides taking a hardline on the private relations between politicians and US officers, he has in his speeches at public rallies pledged no subservience to the US while criminating his opponents of toeing Washington’s line.

In background conversations with US officers, it occurred that Ms Omar was on a “ particular trip”, which hadn’t come through the administration. The trip had been arranged in her particular capacity as the senator, one functionary explained.

Her meeting with Mr Khan had been directly listed by her office through a US- grounded Pakistani businessman, a PTI leader said.

There have been several explanations about her trip, indeed though she has in the once noway shown any interest in Pakistan. One of the further presumptive bones is that her constituency has a sizeable Muslim population and she has herself worked considerably on Islamophobia and may have wished to connect with the PTI president, who had stressed the issue leading to UN designating March 15 as the transnational day to combat Islamophobia.

Meanwhile, President Alvi, while talking to Ms Omar, called for “ formative engagement between the two countries” and emphasised the need for strengthening bilateral ties.

Ms Omar stressed the eventuality for perfecting and strengthening ties between the two countries and “ appreciated the part played by Pakistan in combating Islamophobia”.

She also met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who told her that Pakistan “ wanted to further consolidate bilateral cooperation grounded on collective respect, trust and equivalency”.

In her meeting with Ms Omar, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Khar said “ Pakistan is committed to farther strengthening bilateral relations with the United States and advancing bilateral cooperation in colorful fields of collective interest.”