ISLAMABAD: An out-of-the-blue meeting between Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has sent a wave of panic to the government circles.
According to credible sources, the meeting was held at a helipad in Mardan on Friday that lasted for 11 minutes – enough time to discuss “various matters”.
Sources said that as this news broke out, a wave of panic hit the government circles and the prime minister immediately directed his colleagues to find out its agenda and background through secret agencies. The premier also asked them to find out whether it was scheduled or accidental, and who had arranged the meeting, sources said.
Sources said that few days ago, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar secretly held a meeting with the COAS and offered him to become the field marshal or chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC), and expressed willing of the government in this regard. However, the COAS did not respond to this offer, which also sparked panic in the government circles.
