EDITORIAL: The PDM (Pakistan Democratic Movement) government seems to realise that it has lost the fight for hearts and minds to its nemesis, former prime minister Imran Khan, and now the knives are out for him.
In an interview with a private TV channel Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah asserted that if government led by his party the PML-N found it was being eliminated (from the political scene) it would do anything to save itself without thinking about the merits and demerits of its steps, whether “democratic or undemocratic, principled or unprincipled”, adding that “either he [Khan] will be eliminated or us.” It means this government has no qualms about using state power to get rid of its political opponent.
The minister, whose job it is to maintain law and order, did not stop at that. The PTI chief’s narrative, he said, is creating bad blood among followers of both parties, hence, either he or they could be killed, thereby confirming the PTI Chairman was right when he talked of a plan to kill him during his appearance in Islamabad’s judicial complex by portraying it as some sort of a clash between the police and his supporters, and that he could have been killed had he not left the place in the nick of time on learning about it from someone close to him.
Also, not to be taken lightly is the statement of PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz that the “bulletproof car can also be blown off with a bomb.”
What gives these ruling party leaders the confidence to make such naked threats to assassinate a rival politician and get away, too, is a question to which there are no easy answers.
But clearly, the government is getting frustrated by the rising popularity of PTI leader, as acknowledged by Rana sahib when he said his (Khan’s) narrative is creating bad blood among followers of the two parties. In other words, it resonates with more and more people, causing the government to take desperate measures.
Ahead of the PTI’s Saturday rally at the Iqbal Park, hundreds of the party activists were arrested, and on the day the ‘neutral’ Punjab government blocked all routes to the venue with containers and other obstructions to keep the party supporters and sympathisers away.
Playing along with the government the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) had already placed a ban on TV channels from telecasting live the PTI Chairman’s speeches. But to the chagrin of those behind the ban, social media carried live streaming of the event, showing a massive turnout.
None of this or well over a 100 cases, including treason, terrorism, and insult of religion, contempt of court, and conspiracy to murder a minor PML-N leader registered against Khan, can throw his party out of the political contention.
Apprehending that the government is looking for an excuse to delay elections for an indefinite period, Imran Khan says he has directed his party activists to act with restrain to any provocation by the government forces. That is also important at a time political instability is badly impacting the economy, which is already in a tailspin.
In making the statements Rana Snaullah and Maryam Nawaz have made amidst repressive measures unleashed on the PTI, can only inflame passions and produce anarchy with disastrous consequences for the State and its people.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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