As soon as Asim Munir became Chief of Defence Forces, the world began watching to see what his next move would be against former Pakistan Prime Minister and PTI leader Imran Khan. Experts believe that he is in a big plot against Imran Khan. What is he planning next, and what exactly is happening in Pakistan right now?
Imran Khan ‘Mentally ill,’ says Pakistan Military
In a new move, as soon as the Army chief, Asim Munir, was appointed as Chief of Defence Forces(CDF), the Pakistan military on Friday publicly labelled former Prime Minister Imran Khan as “mentally ill” and accused him of crafting a narrative that poses a direct threat to national security. They also called him a a “narcissist.”
Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, made these remarks during a press conference held shortly after the inauguration of the Chief of Defence Forces Headquarters. According to Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the PTI, are pursuing anti-army politics.
Why Imran Khan remains a threat to Asim Munir
Imran Khan’s time in jail has made his supporters see him as persecuted and a martyr. Long periods of isolation, limits on visits, and repeated claims of mistreatment and ‘death’ rumours have strengthened this belief. Some analysts warn that these actions could backfire.
Imtiaz Gul, executive director of the Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), told Al Jazeera: “The primary objective of blocking access and keeping Khan in solitary confinement is apparently meant to break him into (agreeing to) a compromise and neutralise the groundswell of anti-government sentiment.”
Stopping visits to Khan is now seen not just as a security measure but as a political strategy that could hurt the ruling PML-N and make Khan’s supporters more convinced that institutions are overreaching.
“Imran Khan’s narratives inspired by Afghan and Indian accounts”
Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, also claimed that Imran’s social media narratives are influenced by Afghan and Indian accounts. President Asif Ali Zardari approved the appointment of Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir as COAS concurrently as CDF for 5 years, and a 2-year extension for Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmad Babar Sidhu from 19 March 2026.
The DG ISPR insisted that no one will be allowed to create a rift between Pakistan’s armed forces and its citizens. “Keep the army out of your politics,” he warned, calling on political actors to respect institutional boundaries.
44 US lawmakers accuse Munir and Shehbaz of ‘military-backed repression’
44 members of the United States Congress have criticised Pakistan’s military for increasing control over politics, civil rights, and opponents in the country and abroad. The letter, led by Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and Congressman Greg Casar, shows that lawmakers in the US are willing to publicly hold Pakistan’s military leaders accountable for what they call systematic repression.
The letter was addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio. In it, the lawmakers accuse the administration in Islamabad of operating as a military-run system controlled by Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir. They wrote that they were raising an “urgent concern over the escalating campaign of transnational repression and worsening human rights crisis in Pakistan under the military-backed government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir.”
The lawmakers ask why the Trump administration failed to impose Global Magnitsky sanctions or visa restrictions on Pakistan’s army chief.
