Why I hate Imran

By
anjum
-
121
339

For that, ladies and gentlemen, you have to do some soul searching

I hate Imran Khan. I love the ISI. I love dictators. I hate democracy. I hate mullahs and self-righteous preachers who preach that Islam talks about justice but when it’s time to deliver through Islam, one of their own to the gallows, it’s like they’ve swallowed their own guts and make him a hero. You know what else I hate? I hate the liberals, with their double standards and their empty rhetoric that has failed to make a difference to anyone’s lives in a long long time. You want to hear more? I love Zardari, and I love the PPP. And I know I am not contradicting myself. Because I am entitled to my own opinion, after all it is a free country that will allow me to hate if I want to and will allow me to love if I want to and still bear with me? Or is it? Because I am sure a lot of hate speech is about to roll my way, and I really welcome that.

Despite my hate for the mullahs I still think that Pakistan should be an Islamic welfare state. Oh, and I don’t believe Aman Ki Asha would make a difference if institutional policies work regressively towards depriving the ordinary people of basic rights, the right to water being one of them.

Let’s talk about you? Yes, you the reader. You know what I think about you? I think you’re a coward, a hypocrite, a liar, part of a herd led by shepherd that is driven by their own vested interests. And you know what’s worse? You all think you’re all so right. That everything that has happened to you since you were born, that bully who beat you up in eighth grade to that job that you never managed to get, to the politician that sucks your blood after being elected by you, to the police that denies you of your rights when it is entrusted to protect you, to the ranger that shoots you, is all because you are stuck all around you with morally depraved people.

Reality check, it’s not the people around you, but yourself. Have you ever stopped for one moment and thought about it. How you’re bad mouthing your president but will cheat your way through a system and get favours for yourself just because it benefits you. And then it’s somebody else’s fault? That if anyone has an opinion contrary to yours he is an enemy, because he questions the belief system that you hold so holy to yourself. That you will not tolerate anything that questions your own integrity?

Have you ever stopped and thought about it, how each and every one of you is patronising the system that you truly detest? Maybe you’re not the Edhi you deemed yourself to be. And you know why I write all this, why I write about my supposed ‘hatred’ for Imran Khan or my ‘love’ for the ISI or about all the other things that you have read so far, which are inconsequential to me and not a reflection of my true opinion. Because, they pinch you. Because it strikes right where it hurts you most and I want to do just that. Because I want to see the patience you have for someone who questions your set of beliefs.

And you know what I think about that sea of crowd I saw at the jalsa of Imran Khan in Karachi? I thought, it was the most spectacular and moving sight that I have witnessed in the longest time. That after almost 64 years, it was one of the most befitting tribute to the hero of our nation on his birthday. To Jinnah, and it was a wave standing against the status quo. But you know what else I saw? I saw that sea, not as a herd but as individuals who can think for themselves, who can decide for themselves and who will question Khan when he goes wrong. Who were there not because they were paid, but because they wanted to be there, because they had hope, because they believed things could still change. And I sincerely hope that they would question Khan when he goes wrong, because no one is infallible.

And I saw that herd not as those who will blindly hate those that question their beliefs because they are above all of that. Because they realise that if there is anyone who has failed Pakistan, it is us. All of us collectively as a nation have failed Pakistan. Not India, not America, not the kafirs, but us. We are to blame. So next time, you see a man whipped, trampled, tortured and clubbed to death on the street, or a blast that tears through human flesh, or police disrespecting the very law they are meant to uphold, or a ranger killing someone innocent, or a murder, or an abandoned child left to rot in the street, you should go stand in front of the mirror and look at your own bloodied hands. Let us bring the tsunami of change, by changing ourselves first. By blaming everything and everyone for all the pain and suffering and all the bad things that happen to us, blaming the US, blaming Zardari, blaming the ISI, we’re not getting anywhere. What we must ask ourselves is this, is all the hate, is all the anger, is all the finger pointing going to save Pakistan? Or can we save our country, by individually shouldering the responsibility of making this nation one of the greatest in the world?

So let’s be constructive for a change by admitting to our follies, accepting difference of opinion and standing against the system that we detest, a system we have patronised for a long long time.

The writer is City Editor, Pakistan Today. He can be reached at [email protected]

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121 COMMENTS

  2. I am so amazed at all the comments coming on the article without even giving it a read. This is exactly what I’m afraid is happening to the followers of Khan and PTI.

    • Wajab-ul-katal hain aap. Just kidding, the article was awesome, did reflect the true face of our nation. Unfortunately there are few people who will stand up and truly change themselves to better the nation rather than follow "The Leader".

    • the article is the true picture of our society today. And the worst part is, those people who supported Imran at Karachi and thought for themselves have too stopped tolerating differences in people's opinion about their leader.

  6. I hate you but Not bad effort. At the End you also used IK name to get publicity like Marvi Memon, Try to Stand on your feet… if you brave enough.

    • Firstly Sarfraz, earth has just one moon. Secondly, it's too far away for me to spit on. Thirdly, what you are suggesting defy's Newtons laws of physics since if you spit on the moon, the spit will be suspended in the air. And there will be no dirt on your face. But thanks for the interesting observation.

  44. It is a democracy that we follow. And most of our society makes up for the uneducated class, and hence we were faced with demagogues such as Zardari, Nawaz Sharif. Now that Imran Khan tries to hack the democracy, psuedo intellectuals criticise him of being that way.

  47. So next time, you see a man whipped, trampled, tortured and clubbed to death on the street, or a blast that tears through human flesh, or police disrespecting the very law they are meant to uphold, or a ranger killing someone innocent, or a murder, or an abandoned child left to rot in the street, you should go stand in front of the mirror and look at your own bloodied hands————————– reminds me of the sialkot incident! damn the law!

    • Yeah thats true. Bloodied hands..we all have those. And we are all responsible in the end. I hope Allah Forgives us, because i dont want to carry the burden of those sins to my grave..sins that i dint commit, but by silently witnessing them..i approved. =(

  48. Fantastic article. Even Imran Khan will be proud of you. However, you need to understand that very few people will be able to decipher the content of your article and relate it to the headline and the satire. Keep it up!

  51. what the writer has written i can easy guess from the comments of the readers. for writer you have exactly hit the mark. you have done nothing but did only portray my thoughts.

  53. AoA Ali (the writer)
    You have written your point beautifully. This is what I have been fighting for in my surroundings but it seems like no one is interested in Pakistan’s welfare. Most of us don’t even care about what is happening in our country. On one of the moments we read or see the blast news and on the other moment we laugh, go to dance parties, concerts. We are a dead nation … If we are alive than might be our souls are blind.

    How unfortunate we are 🙁 we can’t see , we can’t listen, and we can’t tolerate the opinion of others. We love fighting yet we point fingers on others …

  55. I hate you but Not bad effort. At the End you also used IK name to get publicity like Marvi Memon, Try to Stand on your feet… if you brave enough.

  56. Oh this article mentions you(Ahmed Nawaz) as well ^ read after 'Let’s talk about you? Yes, you the reader…" 🙂

  59. In this part of the world, we rarely understand the difference between the responsibility that we are required to shoulder and our personal likes and dislikes which more often than not, enter into our professional work and prove detrimental to objective performance of duty. Today, I read another article written by Mr. Auriya Maqbool, in which he tried to make a genuine case for denouncing Miss Shirmeen for her acceptance of Oscar. A genuine attempt of turning a hero into villain. It was full of emotional undertones which called for revival of a superanational bondage of Islamic brotherhood. And as if it were not enough, I come across this article making a case for Imran Khan. A very naïve attempt indeed.
    As an analyst, one is to shoulder a responsibility. One has to pick a subject at a particular point of movement, connect it within its context to systemic and extra-systemic actors/players/impacts and then make an analysis with full clarity of causal links and contextual connectivity, relevance and future projection if required. In this whole process, journalistic ethics of objectivity, impartiality and genuine effort must never be let go unattended. (continues)

  60. What happens in most of the articles that come ‘reader’s way’, is that little efforts are made to refine the analysis, make a point objectively and persuasively and present an interpretation of the event unsullied by one’s personal choices. Furthernore, what makes journalistic writing stand apart from other literary genres are, its brevity, precision and simplicity. Anybody who knows the language cant be a journalist but here perhaps it is the only criterion.
    I, for one, am fulfilling my responsibility as a reader of making an effort and providing my feedback. Yes, the title intrigued me into reading it. Like many other supporters of Imran Khan, I thought who dared hate Imran Khan and why? But at the same time, I was interested that someone may have a point to question this ‘hegemonic idea’ of Imran Khan’s leadership. I did not find any substance in it. The essay started with ‘black satire’. The writer portrays a picture,which most of us have come to hate luckily and he makes us understand him as the genuine antithesis to a good Pakistani. Cleverly, but not cleverly enough, he tells in the second half that it is not him, it, in fact, is the real picture of each one of us who are reading him. By upbraiding us as cowards, hypocrites and liars, he wants to correct us standing on a very high moral pedestal, throwing down his sententious, sermonizing words. Interestingly, by vindicating the real criminal, he throws us the gauntlet to free ourselves of blame, charge sheeted by the author himself. A very reductive approach leading to the conclusion, the problems of Pakistan are the real result of real selfish people of Pakistan and moral of the story ‘be good, have good’, as simple as that.
    (continbues)

  61. As if the poor in Pakistan don’t get education inspite of heavey spending on education only because they like it otherwise, ordinary people in Pakistan do corruption because they find it their moral duty to reward the officials for their valuable services, they don’t chose the right person in election inspite of so many options because they are hypocrites to their backbone, and they don’t favor Imran Khan, inspite of the fact that he is making an alliance with their real ‘saviors’ at the local socio-political setting; the land lords, because they are truly unruly and irrational.
    Mine is one of the robust society in the world. It is not us – the common men and women – who sent army into politics time and again to show us the right path; it is not us who turned Islam into a violent ideology and it is not us who made the constitutions and laws. Let me substantiate my argument. Dr. Waseem, one of the leading academic in Political Science, suggests that military has always been supported by land lords, so called intellectual elite, bourgeoisie Mulla. We rarely were given an opportunity, either to be heard or even think as millions of existential questions were always dumped our way to keep us busy in just living. Regarding second point made above, we love Islam and we do recognize the potential danger of sending mullas into the parliament. We never voted them in and it is one of the salvaging characters of my people who thrive in the midst of your intellectual guidance and mullas’ dooms day scenarios. Give us a break please. It was not the people of Bengal who turned against Pakistan but it was injustice done to them by your military and economic elite. We figured nowhere in the whole equation.
    (continues)

  62. Now let me turn to your case of Imran Khan, I appreciate your concerns for his integrity and your own moral uprightness in acting as a watch dog to his maneuvers, and let me make it clear that I was one of the waves in his tsunami in Lahore. I still stand with him though with reservations. He disenfranchised me once again by making an alliance with those feudal who exploit millions of my kind in perpetuity. Riding on the wave of my emotional outburst, ensuring a pedestal to stand on, the legitimacy of which has been provided by me and many of my kind, he makes an alliance with my adversary. Let me again substantiate my stand point. I live in Kasur. After, his Lahore jalsa, all of politician turned towards PTI and we don’t see any chances of ‘young blood, new or unsullied leaders’ in here. Mian Tufail, Rana Imtiaz, Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri, along with their other colleagues of Q league have joined PTI, with the chances of Sardar Asif Ahmad Ali getting some hold in the party also. This is what Imran Khan offers me in return of the whole popular legitimacy that I, along with others, have provided him to make crucial decisions for me. For God’s sake don’t blame me, even Imran Kahn offers me nothing. There is a lot more than meets the eye my dear.
    Let me just give this piece an abrupt end (my apologies for that). Satire is a double edged sword and requires to be applied dexterously. And within it, the most difficult is ‘self-satire’. We as the reader know our responsibility, it is now time that someone as writer must shoulder the real responsibility taken by themselves.

  64. Ali Rizvi,you have written the article , which was needed most at this time, People are following brazenly and blindly IK, Where as his chicanery is an open-secret, the same pedigrees, same elites, same patriarchs are jumping into the wagon of Ik, where as the latter like a greedy conductor fulling his bus so greedily that these politicos—oh sorry , rats, are jostling in the bus, your love for country deserves kudos, at the same time , while talking about rationalism i dont know why did you not write a word your for rationale of loving PPP, however you have a right to…

  66. Muhammad Daud if you had read this article you would realize how it talks about HOW IMRAN KHAN IS THE LAST AND ONLY HOPE FOR PAKISTAN. The writer is actually a supporter of Imran Khan.

    On the other hand losers such as the majority of the commentators here did not bother reading the article and simply commented because the title stated something. You Mohammad Daud, did not read the article. If you had you would realize that the writer is not living in an aritficial illusion.

  68. thank you for this piece, our time will come. For those who could nt understand Ali did not write this article for or against imran khan

  69. The real reality check is actually the comment stream. Just reflects all we like is to bash against each other without evidence or logical conclusion. Do people actually read what is in the article.

  70. this article was titled ''why i hate Imran khan'' just to gain popularity . the funny thing is , the authors message is ''stand on your own feet'' but still the author uses Imran's name to gain popularity . the author himself is the type of people whom he points at in this article . what a shame .

  74. Dear Rizvi. We do not have enough time for reading. Sometime I upload an article on facebook, the moment people start liking it. The youth is the support base of Imran Khan and the youth class is the most bigot. The around the globe know us as the most voilent, intolerant and and excellent surfers of pornography. Reading is not our habit. We are born to blame US, Israel and India for our own ills. It is common myth in our society that we are pious, innocent and guardian of the faith and the rest are dirty, impure and concocting conspiracies against the fortress of Islam.

  77. Very Well Said Bro. If we change ourselves that is the only the ultimate key to our survival and success.

  78. What writer said? Imran Khan is gr8est Leader oF the world. Writer know nothing. He writess nonsensee… What a waste of timee… Imran Khaan is the bestt. Betterrr than all Ppp PMLN evryonee!!

  79. Dear Wazir, had you bothered reading the article completely you would have known what the writer is talking about. You yourself are an idiot just like the writer mentions in the article, after 'Yes, you, you the reader…' He is merely asking you to question Khan when he goes wrong because we as a people have the tendency to blindly believe in the infallacy of our leaders and that is exactly where we go wrong… The comments are a very good indication and a good place to start for a national a**hole consensus. The hypothesis of the writer has been proven. Great job..

  80. Compliments to Ali Rizvi for his fabulous opinion item published in the March 4 issue. I totally agree with what he has presented as it conforms with my long-held views. Yes, he may receive oodles of hate mail but the fact of the matter is that this is an eye-opener.

    Pakistanis are gradually becoming hostage to the mullah bigotry, self-imposed silence, and blaming everyone but ourselves. Pakistanis tend to adopt the demagoguery of politicians and rabble-rousers as the Gospel truth. Pakistanis generally accept, like zombies, that corruption, shortages, inflation and waste are everyday things that would disappear once a few tyres are burned, a few protest rallies taken out, or a few boisterous sessions on TV channels are aired.

    Alas, all that happens is that Pakistanis keep sucking lollipops laced with tranquilizers and like LSD addicts feel that they are on Cloud Nine.

    Duniya mein Qateel us sa munafiq nahin . . . Jo zulm toh sehta hai, baghawat nahin karta.

    Majyd Aziz
    Former President KCCI

  81. Bottom-line is Politicians and diapers have one thing in common, they both should regularly be changed…

  83. Good article but the basic issue is the right of survival and distribution of resources. When only one party gets all the bonus and others are left to earn daily living -then its results in state called Pakistan. IK is going to bring that change and that is why I will support him.

  84. Zardari is a great politician but his interests are not for Pakistan but for himself. Imran Khan looks more of a debater rather than a leader.

  85. You hate Imran Khan because you must be on par role of Nawaz Sharif.

    SHAHID HUSSEIN QABOOLPURIA,
    LAHORE, PAKISTAN

    • Yes, I am on pay role of Nawaz Sharif and Michael Jackson. How did you find this out? You must be Sherlock Holmes?

  86. Hi ali – I appreciate your bold writing, it needs alot of strength!

    I wud have to say, that it wud have been way better if the heading was WHY I HATE ZARDARI, ALTAF, ASFANDYAR WALI, etc.

    I wud not at all say that PTI is the hub of purity and everyone there is truly honest, but i wud say that if we so hate the people joining PTI, then why do we vote them when they were/are in other parties, like PMLN, PMLQ, etc.

    Corruption has seeped everywhere, from the President to a sweeper.
    So if we are so very much pious, then corrupt people shud be blocked from voting also.
    Faces do not matter in a country where people don’t know anything, but to put a stamp on KITAAB, SHER or TEER!
    Why are we so hypocrite in choosing between our preferences and the realities?
    Regards!

  87. Hi ali!

    At first, i appreciate your bold writing, cuz it needs alot of strength.
    I wud like to say, that it wud have been much better if the heading was WHY I HATE ZARDARI, ALTAF, ASFANDYAR WALI, etc.

    I wud not say that PTI is the hub of purity, but i wud like to ask, that if we have so many issues with the people joining PTI, then why do we vote for them when they are/were in the other parties?

    Corruption has seeped from the President to a peon!
    If we are so honest, then we should block corrupt people from voting also.

    When Imran Khan kept on yelling for 16 years, no one heard him.
    Nobody even cared, people laughed at him.

    Why is he getting this exceptional importance now? If it was about honesty, then why didn’t we care 16 years before? Cuz we are blind followers of BRAND NAMES!

    In a country like Pakistan, where people are just concerned about putting stamps on TEER, SHER or KITAAB, i really don’t think that there is anything to create hype.

    I wud like to end up saying, that we, Pakistanis are very hypocrite in choosing between our preferences and realities.

    If we are i trouble today, we are sole responsible for it!

    Thanks!

  88. Admin, you are a big time loser…
    For all – my comments are being deleted, cuz they are proving the article wrong!
    *Spit on admin*

    P.S.
    Now block me!

  90. I think its a great article, very well written. unless we realize where we went wrong and admit our faults, we can never rectify the problem. just like when one is sick, unless the doctor finds the cause he cannot treat it! Ali I feel this is exactly how most of the educated class is now feeling but they dont know how to go about it. our country needs a good leader to guide its people to the right path. people are also like a big body of water, it has to be channelized. if not then it simply floods and then dissipates away. isnt that so?

    • You see Atifa the problem is that ideological collectivism is good but only to a certain point. Beyond that, it then becomes more of a cult. I have been through a phase where I too had followed someone blindly. Problem with that is, more often than not you would find yourself betrayed if your ideals are not in consonance with what the other person has/is doing. Criticism is important, but more than that tolerance. Change cannot be brought about by people who have no tolerance for the point of view of others. A majority of the comments on the article from supporters of Imran Khan have proven the point that they simply cannot tolerate criticism even if its constructive. And my simple request to those that support him, learn to question him, because if you don't then being the human that he is, he too will commit the same mistakes many others have committed in the past.

  92. @Ali Raza

    Pursuant to your recent comment, we do not have to agree with your 'constructive criticism'. And it is your own stereotyping and rigidity which brands a conflict of opinion and disagreement as blind following and cult adherence. You may believe this is 'constructive flak' but we reserve the right to disagree and repudiate it just like any other narrative trying to protect the existing status-quo.

  93. People have pinned great hopes in Imran; but I fail to understand why he has accepted people of the like Khalid Kharal.
    Thank God, Marvi Memon a spokesperson of Mussharaf till recently had not joined PTI; this is a blessing in disguise.

  94. Most comments have come from those who never read your piece fully.That amply substantiates what you are trying to drive home.I do not find any anti Imran comments in there.Ever wondered with so many Mosques in every street in the country why is that society does not reflect what Islam teaches? Loudspeakers and ill-informed self styled mullahs and uneducated political leadership have totally dominated the psyche of majority of us and we are not accepting this fact.Only divine intervention would probably change this mindset.We should fear that day.Bless you.

  95. I think Perviaz Musharraf is better that all these crooks. He can bring this change and empower people of Pakistan to bring the change. THe present system is corrupt and will bring the same people in the next election. People of Pakistan are being fooled by these politicians who wants to keep people as their slave by giving no rights to stand against them. The people of Pakistan should change the system not make love or hate affair with the personalities.

  99. i agreed with the topic hum hi Elect karty hain aur hum hi cheeekhtay heinn kay yeh hum kia ley aye heinnnnn true agreed or hum hi leader lataay hein kay wo humain insaaf dilaye gaa aur jab wo ata hay tu insaaf bhool jata hay yeh sach hi tu hai aur kia ho raha hay well hope for a better Pakistan and i admire the article and yes em a supporter of PTI 🙂 so cheers and have patience PTI followers have patience all of you dont fight!!…

  100. article is about dual standards that we set hum usi system ko bura bhi kehtay hain os mein se apnay kaam bhi nikalwaty hain jab kam ho jaye system acha jab kaam na ho system buraaa yeh main Aim hai article ka use your brain all and have patience pls

  101. LOL I HATE THE WRITER OF THIS ARTICLE … SEEMS LIKE HE JUST WROTE IT WITH CLOSED EYES ND MIND AS WELL! 😛

    • "Let’s talk about you? Yes, you the reader. You know what I think about you? I think you’re a coward, a hypocrite, a liar, part of a herd led by shepherd that is driven by their own vested interests. And you know what’s worse? You all think you’re all so right." Yes, Usman, the writer of this article wrote this for you. Ironic how he predicted how the average PTI supporter would react. What a pity, and he was actually trying to knock some sense into you.

  102. Brilliant article, exactly how I feel about the entire issue. The Imran Khan bandwagon has become a fad now, with everyone leaping on board just because it has become fashionable to support Khan. The comments have also proven that the average intelligence of an Imran Khan supporter can be fit into a matchbox.

  103. Da writr is on payrol of establishment and PPP. PPP have habit of spreading lies and propganda!!!!

  104. Good one Ali……. and U can guess the seriousness of our nation by commenting on title without reading the article……lol……keep it up.

  106. Is imran the last hope?????
    Kya wo waqai maseeha hai?
    agar haan to waqai hamen eik maseha ki talash hai.
    aur yahi nahin, aaj islam puri dunia mein shadeed zalel o ruswa ho raha hai.
    ham puri zindagi kisi na kisi ka intizaar karnay mein laga den gy.
    khud ko nahin badlen gy.
    q k is mein mehnat karni parti hai.
    ham blame game khylen gy.
    ham ny agar KHUDA NA KHWASTA khud ko change kar lia to ham sudhar jaen gay.
    ham bhookhay maren gay.
    aur aaj k dor mein bhookha kon marna chahta hai?
    is no jawaan ny qalam uthaya jo k eik qabil-e-sataaish baat hai.
    q k ye by hiss aur by ghairat nai hai.
    jissay ham passive people bhi khtay hain.
    leikin is k saath saath ye saza ka bhi mustahiq hai q k is ny kis qom ko jaganay ki jurrat ki hai.
    isay pagal keh kar pathar maaro.
    sang zani karro is ki.
    k ye by waquf nahin jaanta k is qom k Mullah fatwa farosh Hakim Zameer farosh aur Qom Zameer farosh hai.
    kitna pagal hai ye shakhs………..

    TU BHI TO KITNA PAGAL HAI
    ANDHO’N K SHEHER MEIN AAINAY BYCHTA HAI…..

    ARSALAN JATOI
    dep. of Media Studies.

  108. i also feel the same as you bcoz people like dislike pk m.a person likes other countries b4 knowing their own problem.they seldom look at themselves,always criticize others instead of accepting their own mistakes.

  109. i hate imran khan and his emotional parti PTI hahahahha: : sirf jazbati log han boht jaldi tek ho jayn ge
    PML n zindabad
    love u Nawaz shareef

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