Running after a Pyrrhic victory

PML-N and PTI both have weakened the democratic system

What one concludes from the statements by Imran Khan and his PML-N detractors is that there is little hope of their scaling down the ongoing confrontation. Imran Khan is out to put an end to ‘monarchy’ and re-audit the entire election not through the National Assembly but by show of force on August 14. He has been led to believe that if the march does not achieve the aim, the sit-in will. The PTI chief is blithely unconcerned about the consequences of the precedent he is setting. In democracies an elected government can be removed either through a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly or through elections held at the sat the end of the prescribed term. What Khan is trying to prove is that an elected government can also be sent home anytime during its tenure by forcing it to hold mid-term elections when its ratings are down.

The first ever completion of tenure by an elected government followed by a peaceful transfer of power had led many to think that democracy had come to stay and was maturing. This had also led to hopes that henceforth institutions would be made to strictly abide by their constitutional mandate. Further, that time had come for the PM to act as a de facto chief executive. It was also believed that important policies would now be formulated by the civilian government after receiving feedbacks from stakeholders and a thorough debate in Parliament. The way the PML-N ignored Parliament and delayed vital decisions or took them at the spur of the moment without proper homework, as in the case of opening talks with the Taliban, contributed to weakening the system.

The army will play the role of the referee in the match the two parties have set up. Irrespective of whether the PML-N or PTI wins the battle, it will turn out to be a Pyrrhic victory. The battered and bruised winner will hold the office but not the real authority which will pass on to the referee.