Islamabad
 The chief of Pakistan’s spy agency ISI has issued strict orders to all commanders to stay away from politics following directives from army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa to offset a smear campaign against the military by ousted prime minister Imran Khan’s party, sources reported.
Lieutenant General Nadeem Anjum, director general (DG) of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), personally issued the instructions to his subordinates, sources reported.
 They have been told in the strictest terms to stay away from politics and avoid any such activity,  the report quoted a source as saying.
The spymaster further said that there would be zero-tolerance for violations and any intelligence official found violating the directives would have no place in the premier agency.
The development came a day after army chief Bajwa directed his top commanders and key officers including those from the Inter-Services Intelligence to stay away from politics after leaders of ousted prime minister Khan-led party alleged that some officials of the country’s intelligence agency were trying to  manipulate  the upcoming by-elections in Punjab.
Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has been leading a vicious campaign against the security establishment since the toppling of its government in April this year through a no-confidence motion, according to the paper.
The party has now started peddling the narrative that the security establishment has been engaged in  political engineering  to manipulate the upcoming by-elections in favour of the PML-N and its coalition partners, the report said.
The bypolls on the 20 vacant seats of the Punjab assembly will be held on July 17.
