Pakistan’s hot winter has arrived

The Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) Friday decision to disqualify former prime minister Imran Khan as a member of parliament days after he won six of seven National Assembly seats in by elections in three provinces, has landed the Islamic republic in a new phase of tensions. These tensions between the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and 11-party ‘rainbow government’ headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have led to a wave of protests across the country already. 

PTI supporters, mainly the youth, have already begun coming out to the streets in important cities against the poll body’s much-expected verdict. The political temperature will go up further in the days and weeks ahead. Important PTI leaders are holding consultations at the Banigala residence of the cricketer-turned-politician for an effective future strategy to bring the rulers under pressure to announce a date for fresh elections. 

Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal has already said that fresh balloting is not possible before October next year when the assemblies will be completing their constitutional term. 

The federal government has also started efforts to dislodge the PTI-backed governments of Punjab, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan. Defence Minister Khwaja Asif said recently that work on the project is in progress. 

On the other hand, the PTI has also decided to challenge the ECP’s decision against Imran Khan in the Islamabad High Court with the request that the impugned order be set aside forthwith. However, nobody is in a position to say how long the court will take to decide the matter. 

The Supreme Court Chief Justice’s recent advice to the PTI to play its role in parliament for which it had been elected should be used as a face-saver.   

Ashraf Mumtaz

The provincial assemblies of Punjab and KP have also been called for Saturday to review the political situation and come up with a strategy to thwart the PDM government’s designs against Khan. 

The federal government has also made preparations to use brute force against protesters and ensure the security of the state assets and common citizens. In view of the preparations on both sides, it may be predicted that the country will experience a hot winter. 

In political circles, apprehensions are being expressed that the situation may get out of control as the powerful army – which plays a decisive role in such situations – has already decided to keep itself away from politics. 

Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa is due to retire on November 29 after serving out his extended term of six years. Unless his successor is nominated by the government, the institution will watch the unfolding situation like a silent spectator. 

Unfortunately, the gulf between the PTI and the ruling coalition is so wide that there is no possibility of talks between them. President Arif Alvi (a former PTI secretary general) who played a behind-the-scenes role to bring the two sides closer has not succeeded. 

The ECP has held Khan guilty of corrupt practices in a case related to the declaration of assets he made from the sale of state gifts. He is accused of misusing his position to purchase and sell gifts received during state visits to different countries. 

Khan doesn’t deny the allegation but says ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif and former president Asif Zardari had also taken home gifts from the Toshakhana. 

The disqualification of Khan, unless reversed by the courts, will be a serious setback for the PTI as there is no leader capable of leading the entity in the absence of the 70-year old chairman of the party. 

Prudent to point out here, that the PTI chairman has repeatedly branded the Chief Election Commissioner as a partisan official playing into the hands of the PML-N and has moved a reference against him in the Supreme Judicial Council to seek his removal from office. 

The Supreme Judicial Council is a constitutional body comprising judges of the supreme and high courts. So far, it has not been decided when it will be able to take the matter up. However, while the matter against the Chief Election Commissioner is pending, the CEC has disqualified Imran Khan. 

Whatever the future plans of the PTI, political analysts say Khan should give up his stubbornness and direct the legislators to stage a comeback in the legislature and play a constructive role in steering the country out of serious problems. 

The Supreme Court Chief Justice’s recent advice to the PTI to play its role in parliament for which it had been elected should be used as a face-saver. 

Over 120 MNAs of the PTI are certainly in a position to keep the 11-party ruling coalition on track and force it to take only such decisions as are in the best national interest. 

In fact, had the PTI lawmakers been present in the assembly, the PDM government would not have been able to make the accountability laws toothless, because of which important leaders have extricated themselves from corruption cases so easily and so quickly. 

- The writer is a senior and veteran journalist with a career spanning 40 years with major national and international newspapers.