Facing severe backlash over his remarks against Pakistan Army chief, posters featuring Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Sardar Ayaz Sadiq with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman came up in parts of Lahore.
The posters, which dubbed him as “traitor”, went viral on social media after first being spotted in the constituency of the former National Assembly speaker.
In some of the posters, Sadiq’s face was morphed to resemble Varthaman.
This came days after Sadiq told the Parliament that Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa was perspiring and his “legs were shaking” when Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that India would have attacked “that night at 10 pm” if Pakistan did not release Abhinandan.
“I remember Shah Mahmood Qureshi was in the meeting in which Imran Khan had refused to attend and Chief of Army Staff General Bajwa came into the room, his legs were shaking and he was perspiring. Foreign Minister said for god’s sake let Abhinandan go, India’s about to attack Pakistan at 9 pm,” PML(N) MP Ayaz Sadiq had said in a speech in Pakistan’s National Assembly.
Foreign Office spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said “there was no pressure on Pakistan at all regarding the release of Wing Commander Abhinandan.”
“The Government of Pakistan took the decision as a gesture of peace, which was appreciated by the international community,” Chaudhri said.
Wing Commander Varthaman came into the limelight after he shot down a Pakistani aircraft F-16, which had transgressed into the Indian airspace during a dogfight between Indian and Pakistani air force on February 27, 2019 and in the process, his plane crossed over to Pakistani side and was shot down. He was released on the night of March 1 by Pakistan.
He has been awarded the Vir Chakra on Independence Day by President Ram Nath Kovind for his exemplary bravery.