Evolution, no revolution
For the last more than ten days the nation has become hostage to the antics of Imran-Qadri nexus and their avowed resolve to pull down the edifice of democracy and constitutional rule in the country, thanks to the hype created by the polarised and partisan media and the nerve wrecking scenarios being contrived to spread despondency among the masses. The media as a fourth pillar of the state is supposed to have an unremitting allegiance to the national interests and act as a forum for free and unbiased debate on national issues maintaining a pluralistic approach. It is painful to note that some of the electronic channels have almost become a party to the current crisis and are feverishly engaged in misguiding the masses with an explicit intent to precipitate the already egregious situation. The case in point is the interview of former Additional Secretary (AS) Election Commission of Pakistan Mr Afzal Khan with a private TV channel on Sunday night in which the anchorperson was seen rubbing in the notion of extensive rigging in the elections and trying to put words in his mouth to extrapolate the intended outcome.
The interview coming at a time when the country was going through a crisis situation, itself speaks for the motives behind it. It is really regrettable that a media outlet became part of an orchestrated campaign against the government built on unsubstantiated allegations about rigging in the elections. The AS was craftily led by the anchorperson into endorsing the allegations that Imran Khan has been levelling ever since the launching of his Azadi march. The testimony of the AS was based on only conjectures rather than any solid evidence and in the end he exposed the farce by saying that he had no proof of what he has said. The moment the interview was aired Imran Khan immediately taking cue from those bizarre revelations started demanding the resignation of the Prime Minister even more vigorously and continues to use it as a whipping horse to up the ante. That explains the whole connection and the source of this despicable ploy.
Millions of Pakistanis who voted for Imran including myself, are extremely disappointed at his brand of politics premised on self-aggrandizement and scant respect for the democratic and constitutional norms in furthering one’s political agenda. I am particularly dismayed at the derogatory and abusive language and the invectives that he has been using against the Prime Minister, government functionaries and political leaders opposed to his machinations. Even his stint at a British university seems to have failed in exorcising the ‘wild’ in him. His collusion with Dr Qadri who is not even a stakeholder in the political system of the country and has been using equally foul and derogatory language, also speaks volumes about the motives behind their campaigns which seem to have been choreographed by the same source. That is the stigma which Imran Khan will never be able to remove from his face no matter how hard he tries. He has actually put his political career on the line.
The government so far has shown remarkable restraint despite the provocations and the stubbornness shown by the duo for pressing their demands. The agitation by Imran ostensibly is built around alleged rigging in the elections. Therefore his demand for resignation of the Prime Minister has no moral or legal basis until and unless these allegations are substantiated. Since by conceding to his demand the government has already agreed to form the judicial commission to probe into the matter, all the stakeholders are better advised to wait for the outcome. If as a result of this probe the allegations are proved then the government would have no option but to dissolve the assemblies and go for fresh elections. The other demands including reforms in the electoral system can also be made in the light of the revelations of the probe. The country cannot afford any unconstitutional solution to the present crisis and whatever measures are required to be taken to settle the issue would have to be initiated in conformity with the constitution. There is no other way to go about it.
Qadri’s case is entirely different. He rejects the prevalent system outrightly. His focus is on bringing down the entire system through his much touted revolution with the help of a few thousand disciples who are staging a sit-in at the D Chowk for more than ten days now. He is more aggressive and threatening than Imran Khan. The only point of convergence between him and Imran is the demand for resignation of the Prime Minister and the dissolution of the assemblies. They have not budged from this demand in negotiations with the government and the stalemate continues.
Qadri has given the government 48 hours notice to succumb to his demands failing which he would be forced to unleash his revolution (which ended last night). Similarly Imran has also adopted a more belligerent and threatening posture after the indiscretion committed by Afzal Khan. Imran-Qadri nexus, therefore, is a recipe for disaster. It would create more chaos, uncertainty and lawlessness in the country adding to its already diabolical challenges. Both these leaders need to act in a sane manner giving preference to the national interests rather than pursuing their hidden agendas. God forbid if the things go out of hand as a result of the ensuring confrontation, even they would lose control over the events which once triggered have their own momentum. They need to learn from history and stop bidding for the interests of the non-democratic forces.
They are treading a dangerous path. It is however heartening to note that all the political forces, Parliament, civil society, lawyers and media representative bodies and above all the judiciary, for the first time in the history of the country stand united in defending democracy and constitutional rule in the country. Imran and Qadri stand isolated in this regard. This unity has also sent a very strong message to the string pullers of the two puppets that they have miscalculated the mood of the public and the stakeholders in the continuation of constitutional rule in the country. It is a very positive development that can act as a great deterrence against any unconstitutional move. Therefore they also need to revisit their script. Any indiscretion on their part would not only plunge the country into an ending turmoil but would also bring them in direct confrontation with the masses. The ongoing madness must give way to sanity to winch the country out of the quicksand it is stuck into.
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