Leaked conversation: 'Good, govt deserves it,' Imran allegedly told Alvi after PTV attack

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief was apparently pleased with protesters storming the headquarters of Pakistan Television Network in Islamabad’s high-security “red zone” last year during the party’s four-month long sit-in outside Parliament, stating that the government “deserved it”.

In a leaked but yet to be verified telephonic conversation, Imran Khan told party leader Dr Arif Alvi that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government deserved the attack.

In the audio recording, the PTI chief is heard saying, “This is good”  ”They deserve it, the b*****ds you see, otherwise Nawaz will not resign; he should resign before the joint session,” he goes on to say.

Hundreds of protesters allegedly belonging to the PTI and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek briefly seized the state broadcaster on September 1, 2014 at a time when the country was in the grip of an intense political crisis spearheaded by Imran and PAT chief Tahirul Qadri.

The phone conversation, which begins with Alvi informing Imran about the attack, started making rounds on social media last night. Shared by supporters and opponents alike, the video led to people calling for an explanation.

Although, there has been no official statement yet by the PTI on the ‘phony’ controversy, Alvi on Twitter claimed that different conversations between him and PTI chief were ‘spliced together’.