'Shot ourselves in our foot': Nawaz Sharif blames army's meddling for Pakistan's miseries

Lahore, Dec 20: Amplifying his attack on the army, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, who has been ousted by it in all his three terms as Pakistan Prime Minister, on Tuesday blamed it for all the country's woes.

He said that this was akin to them having "shot ourselves in our own foot".

"Today where Pakistan is (in state of its economy)... this is not done by India, the US or even Afghanistan. In fact, we shot ourselves in our own foot.. they (the army) imposed a selected (regime) on this nation by rigging the 2018 polls that led to the sufferings of the people and downfall of the economy," he told aspirants for the party ticket, for next year's elections, in a meeting here, reports said.

Sharif, who in a televised address to the nation last week blamed the military establishment of 2014-17 for forcing senior judges to remove him from power, also attacked the higher judiciary for the state of affairs.

"The judges garland them (military dictators) and legitimise their rule when they break the Constitution. When it comes to a Prime Minister the judges stamp his ouster," he said.

Sharif, who returned to the country in October after a four-year-long period of self-exile, also attacked former ISI chief Gen Faiz Hamid for his role in ousting him from power in 2017.

"They (military) made this decision as they wanted to bring their selected man into power," he said, in a reference to arch-rival Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supremo and former PM Imran Khan.