Government-TLYRA deal invites criticism

The agreement with Tehreek-e-Labaik Ya Rasool Allah (TLYRA) that ended the Faizabad 21-day dharna was a failure of both military and civilian administration. A senior military official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the government of Pakistan requested the Army to resolve the issue and it became incumbent on the army to defuse the situation.
The official cited Article 245 of the Constitution, Functions of Armed Forces, [clause (1), "The Armed Forces shall, under the directions of the federal government, defend Pakistan against external aggression or threat of war, and, subject to law, act in aid of civil power when called upon to do so." And clause (3), "A High Court shall not exercise any jurisdiction under Article 199 in relation to any area in which the Armed Forced of Pakistan are, for the time being, acting in aid of civil power in pursuance of Article 245"].
"The government sought help of the military to resolve the issue when the lawyers began marching towards Islamabad," he recalled referring to a telephone call made by the then army chief General Kayani to Aitzaz Ahsan who was leading the rally. He maintained that it was the military that restored judiciary, adding that the then army chief General Kayani (retd) assured the then President Zardari that the issue would be resolved, and he did.
"CoAS General Raheel Sharif pledged that an FIR would be lodged in the Model Town case as well. So, army has provided support in such cases before and in this particular case [Faizabada sit-in] too, the military played its role after the civilian government sought its help," he added. Lieutenant General Talat Mehmood (retd) said that by bowing down to pressure of a handful of protesters, the government 'sold its soul'.
He said that the military was in a very difficult situation as it was under pressure from the people of the twin cities whose movements had been severely restricted due to sit-in. He said that the military had two options to resolve the issue: either use force, which the army understandably was reluctant to use against its own people, or assist the civilian administration and the protesters to reach an agreement. Lieutenant General Talat Mehmood (retd) categorically stated that the army should not have become party to the agreement and therefore should not have signed the document.
He acknowledged that the military went beyond its mandate when it became party to the agreement. He further stated that by involving the military to deal with the protesters, the state has become 'much weaker' and 'it appears as if the government has become dysfunctional which is a sad reflection on all state intuitions'.
"It is a sad reflection of coordination between various state institutions. It was obvious the state institutions are not working in harmony," he lamented. Senator Farhatullah Babar of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) said that a deal with the LYRA should not have been struck after they had already been declared as terrorists by Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Senator Babar maintained that violence must only be used by the state. Senator Azam Khan Swati of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said that the military was dragged into the fray by the government in order to hide its incompetence but it 'further exposed its double standards'. He said that the only solution is fresh elections, as writ of the state has been eroded, and the entire cabinet led by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is focused on protecting a disqualified man.