ISLAMABAD: Mehmood Khan Achakzai, head of Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz-e-Aain-e-Pakistan (TTAP), a coalition of six opposition parties, on Wednesday announced the launch of a nationwide peaceful movement aimed at unseating Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government.
Speaking at a press conference, flanked by senior opposition leaders including Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, Achakzai said the movement’s primary objective was the restoration of constitutional supremacy, rule of law, and the sanctity of the people’s right to vote – a right, he alleged, that has been repeatedly subverted through systematic electoral manipulation.
“No one should ascend to power through backdoor arrangements, aided by hidden hands,” said the veteran nationalist leader. “Governments must derive their legitimacy from the ballot, not from the blessings of those who operate outside the constitutional framework.”
Achakzai was particularly scathing in his criticism of the current ruling dispensation, alleging widespread nepotism, erosion of meritocracy, and institutional decay. “Jobs are being sold, and those who peddle public offices are rewarded rather than held accountable. This is not governance; this is betrayal of the state.”
The TTAP chief also turned his ire towards the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) – a key ally in the ruling coalition – stating that the party, which holds the presidency and oversees the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), in addition to receiving numerous other favours from the government, is complicit in the erosion of democracy in the country. “The party once led by Benazir Bhutto now stands complicit in the very wrongs it once resisted.”
Achakzai also strongly criticised Nawaz Sharif, the PML-N supremo and three-time former prime minister, accusing him of having abandoned the cause of civilian supremacy. “He raised slogans of ‘Vote Ko Izzat Do’ but ultimately chose to strike deals and flee to London when the people needed him most.”
Reiterating the peaceful nature of the planned agitation, he said: “We will not burn tyres or block roads. We will not hurl abuses. But we will resist – from Gilgit to Gwadar, from Quetta to Karachi. The people will rise.”
The TTAP leadership announced a coordinated series of protests across all provinces, pledging to mobilise millions under the banner of constitutional revival.
They stated that the opposition parties – particularly those under the banner of TTAP – would not rest until this “illegitimate regime”, which they accuse of stealing the public mandate, is removed, claiming it has brought the country to the brink of collapse economically, politically, and socially.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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