Imran not to take oath of office from President Zardari

Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan has said he will not take oath of office from President Asif Ali Zardari if his party wins the 2013 general election and he becomes Prime Minister.

"The Tehrik-e-Insaf will sweep the coming elections and in such a scenario, I will not take oath as Prime Minister from President Zardari," Khan said while talking to journalists in Multan yesterday. He is currently touring Punjab to address a string rallies.

Top leaders of the ruling Pakistan People's Party have said the general election will be held by May next year.

Zardari, who is also the chief of the PPP, is expected to complete his term as President next September.

Referring to PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif's recent remarks that his party had made it possible for the PPP-led government to complete its tenure, Khan questioned why Nawaz Sharif and his brother, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, had raised slogans of "Go Zardari Go".

Khan acknowledged that the flow of his party's "tsunami" had temporarily been curtailed because of party elections.

He claimed that a meeting to be held in Layyah district of Punjab would be an eye-opener for those having any doubts about his party's popularity.

"The Tehrik-e-Insaf does not need political heavyweights. We only need ideological workers," he said.

Khan said just as an honest district administration could change things in his area within days, the Tehrik-e-Insaf too could bring about change in Pakistan within 90 days of coming to power.

The party's detractors, however, believe the party is unlikely to win more 30 seats in the 342-member lower house of parliament.

Khan's critics also say his party rose to prominence largely due to his proximity to former Inter-Services Intelligence chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha.