In 2019, then-prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan removed General Asim Munir from the post of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general for intimating him that he wanted to probe accusations of corruption against his wife, Bushra Bibi, and her circle, reported international publication The Telegraph on Sunday.
The publication reported that then-Lt General Asim Munir was appointed for the post for a three-year term, but in 2019, he was removed from the post just eight months later.
Prior to becoming the director general of the ISI, he oversaw the organizational security and internal discipline of the army as chief of military intelligence (MI).
He is said to have initially battled with Imran Khan, who was the prime minister at the time, while he was in charge of the ISI.
It is said that Gen Munir told Khan he wanted to look into claims of corruption involving his wife and her friends.
After barely eight months in a three-year tenure position, Gen Munir was fired from his position in June 2019.
The army provided no justification for the reorganization, which saw Gen Munir replaced by hardliner Faiz Hameed and sent to Punjab to head an army corps.
"Gen Munir has been described as a straight arrow by people who know him, and he clearly ran into difficulty with Khan when he decided as head of the ISI to bring to his attention that there were corruption allegations against members of his family," said Farzana Shaikh of the London-based Chatham House think tank.
"Family members focused on Khan's wife, so it got fairly close to the bone. Therefore, Khan is said to have fired Munir on such grounds, despite the fact that Khan has never mentioned the reasons or provided an explanation".
Pakistan has entered a deep political crisis as a result of Imran Khan's 13-month conflict with the country's government and military leadership, which has devolved into a personal conflict between Khan and Gen Munir.
Gen Munir has come to be identified by Khan as the mastermind of what Khan claims is a calculated effort to persecute him and prevent him from returning to power.
Khan has more recently launched harsh personal assaults on the army chief, stating that Gen Munir is endangering "democracy, our constitution, and fundamental rights" in a country where the army is often talked of with love and appreciation.
Even though Khan has shown little proof of his claims that he was forced out of office in a US-backed plot with the help of powerful generals and his political adversaries, his claims have gained considerable support.
Khan is fully aware of the force the military can exert. In the past, he was a darling of the generals and was charged with pursuing his own political opponents while in office.
He has made it plain that his issue is with the army leader rather than the organization or structure that gives the army the power to make decisions, Dr. Shaikh said.
She said, "Really, what Imran Khan is upset about is a military institution that has now stopped supporting him." She concluded that Khan truly wants the military to be on his side.
On the other hand, Khan has termed the article published in The Telegraph ‘fake’. He stated, "Neither did Gen Asim show me any proof of my wife's corruption, nor did I make him resign because of that."
The publication reported that then-Lt General Asim Munir was appointed for the post for a three-year term, but in 2019, he was removed from the post just eight months later.
Prior to becoming the director general of the ISI, he oversaw the organizational security and internal discipline of the army as chief of military intelligence (MI).
He is said to have initially battled with Imran Khan, who was the prime minister at the time, while he was in charge of the ISI.
It is said that Gen Munir told Khan he wanted to look into claims of corruption involving his wife and her friends.
After barely eight months in a three-year tenure position, Gen Munir was fired from his position in June 2019.
The army provided no justification for the reorganization, which saw Gen Munir replaced by hardliner Faiz Hameed and sent to Punjab to head an army corps.
"Gen Munir has been described as a straight arrow by people who know him, and he clearly ran into difficulty with Khan when he decided as head of the ISI to bring to his attention that there were corruption allegations against members of his family," said Farzana Shaikh of the London-based Chatham House think tank.
"Family members focused on Khan's wife, so it got fairly close to the bone. Therefore, Khan is said to have fired Munir on such grounds, despite the fact that Khan has never mentioned the reasons or provided an explanation".
Pakistan has entered a deep political crisis as a result of Imran Khan's 13-month conflict with the country's government and military leadership, which has devolved into a personal conflict between Khan and Gen Munir.
Gen Munir has come to be identified by Khan as the mastermind of what Khan claims is a calculated effort to persecute him and prevent him from returning to power.
Khan has more recently launched harsh personal assaults on the army chief, stating that Gen Munir is endangering "democracy, our constitution, and fundamental rights" in a country where the army is often talked of with love and appreciation.
Even though Khan has shown little proof of his claims that he was forced out of office in a US-backed plot with the help of powerful generals and his political adversaries, his claims have gained considerable support.
Khan is fully aware of the force the military can exert. In the past, he was a darling of the generals and was charged with pursuing his own political opponents while in office.
He has made it plain that his issue is with the army leader rather than the organization or structure that gives the army the power to make decisions, Dr. Shaikh said.
She said, "Really, what Imran Khan is upset about is a military institution that has now stopped supporting him." She concluded that Khan truly wants the military to be on his side.
On the other hand, Khan has termed the article published in The Telegraph ‘fake’. He stated, "Neither did Gen Asim show me any proof of my wife's corruption, nor did I make him resign because of that."