For Imran Khan, a taste of his own medicine

From higher moral pedestal to equal footing among the corrupt

Imran Khan kept the federal government on pins and needles for the best part of the year 2014 on the issue of rigging in the national elections. The PTI chief declared that the National Assembly formed after the elections was bogus. He demanded Nawaz Sharif’s resignation and when this did not happen he marched on Islamabad. Later he announced shutting down of Karachi and Faisalabad. He ignored the critics who said he was destabilising the system and harming national economy. Khan vowed to overthrow the government if his demand for a judicial commission to inquire into the charges of rigging was not accepted. The PTI chief also accused the PML-N and PPP leadership for being involved in mega corruption, presenting himself and other leaders of the PTI as thoroughly honest.

The LG elections in KP have burst the bubble of PTI’s honesty. Gross malpractices and widespread violence have led the tripartite opposition to announce a shutter down strike throughout the province. Pervez Khattak must go, says the opposition, as he manipulated government machinery to have results of PTI’s liking. The offer of fresh elections under the same administration is unacceptable to the opposition. Those who won the elections oppose Khan’s offer while some of those who lost it on account of Khattak’s interference are camping outside Bani Gala to record their protest. Meanwhile, confronted with devastating evidence during a TV show, Pervez Khattak conceded that patronage and money might have played a role in the appointment of as many as 214 police personnel during his tenure. The CM agreed that the politicians had to make recommendations under the pressure of their voters and friends, indicating that the PTI is no different from the rest of the ‘corrupt’ parties.

Imran Khan must have realised by now how it feels when the shoe is on the other foot. The opposition is determined to turn the tables on the PTI. Imran Khan sowed the wind, he must reap the whirlwind now.