MUZAFFARABAD: Former Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) prime minister and senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Raja Farooq Haider on Thursday said if the government wanted to imprison him [for alleged embezzlements], it should do so without delay, as he would not apply for either prearrest or post-arrest bail.

`Whoever wants to file a reference against me should do it today rather than tomorrow. Rest assured, whether I stay in jail for a year or two, I will not apply for bail,` he said during his speech at a public meeting held in Nakyal, Kotli, to mark the third death anniversary of veteran Kashmiri leader Sardar Sikandar Hayat.

`But he should remember that he will be paid back in the same coin... What eoes around comes around,` MrHaider added, in a pointed reference to Prime Minister Anwarul Haq.

Mr Haider, who has long been at odds with Prime Minister Haq, sharply criticised his governance style and the performance of his government.

`In AJK, both the government and the opposition are from the PTI. The prime minister remains a supporter of Imran Khan, as he has neither issued a statement against him nor condemned the May 9 [2023] incidents,` Mr Haider claimed.

He further alleged that AJK cabinet meetings were held through circulation and that even the budget was approved in this manner.

`I announce my full resistance to the current political situation, but remember, I am not taking on the entire responsibility. Everyone must also do their part,` he stressed.

He also claimed that former premier Sardar Tanveer Ilyas was trapped through a conspiracy and subsequently disqualified. Staff Correspondent