Many cricketing terms seem to have made their way into political jargon, thanks to the kaptaan. Much was made out of the talk of ‘third umpire’ recently. Match-fixing has been around for some time, of course. And lately Khan sb accused Siraj-ul-Haq of playing on both sides of the wicket. The JI ameer shot back that he had been requested to arbitrate by both parties; he had no desire to play on any side of the wicket. But perhaps the skipper overlooks how in all the googlies being exchanged, he too has been caught behind, or trapped LBW, or something.
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TuQ said he was going away to revive party fortunes – he’s going to partake in all elections from now on, that’s why – but reality seems slightly different. Word is that he’s shuttled straight back home to Canada. One reason might be his passport expiring – imagine that interfering with a revolution – but a far more compelling motive seems the fresh, clean, welcoming-back-home Canadian breeze. All that dust and debris around the container seems to have irritated Sheikh-ul-Islam’s throat. The one time he did take a walk, he kept a handkerchief glued to his nose, and then he rushed back to the container. But this was Islamabad, our cleanest and clearest. And neither the red zone nor D-chowk smelt this bad prior to the dharna. If this made the leader flee for fresher air, good luck with the revolution all over the country.
