“We did not misquote Imran Khan. We stand absolutely by our reporting of the interview. Khan himself is not saying we misquoted him, only that we took his remarks out of context, but we provided the context, as you can see in the story,” The Guardian's World Affairs Editor Julian Borger said in a tweet.
Imran had claimed that The Guardian had misrepresented his statement ostensibly condemning the attack on Rushdie earlier. A tweet posted on the official account of the PTI quoted Imran as saying that the British newspaper misrepresented his interview. He then goes on to explain how he had actually shed light on the Islamic method of punishing a blasphemer. It was in this context, he claims, he had spoken about Rushdie.
“The Guardian took my speech out of context. I refused to attend the seminar on inviting the accursed Salman Rushdie to India. In the interview [with The Guardian], I explained the Islamic method of punishing a blasphemer. I referred to the Sialkot tragedy, and spoke of Rushdie in the same context,” PTI’s Twitter handle quoted Imran as saying.
Rushdie was attacked in New York on August 12. He was set to deliver a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution when a man stabbed him as he was being introduced. The attacker was later overpowered.