Moves to eliminate Imran Khan from politics

Unelected government is playing with country’s fate

By Latheef Farook

Pakistan’s ruling feudal families whose blunders created Bangladesh and divided the country seems to be all out to finish democratically elected Prime Minister Imran Khan   not realizing the danger involved.  

Former cricket legend turned politician Imran Khan was elected Prime Minister of Pakistan in a free and fair elections in August 2018. Since then  Oxford University, RGS Worcester and Aitchison College educated  politician Imran Khan, chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf,   gave a much needed democratic flavor to Pakistan, known for its endless military rule since its inception on 1947. 

Imran developed a vision to build up a Pakistan which will depend on itself   rather than on outside powers with their own  hostile agendas.      

 Imran Khan wanted Pakistan to have an independent foreign policy. He once said the current political crisis started due to his government’s “independent foreign policy” that used to be earlier controlled through “telephone calls”. This angered Washington. Khan’s foreign policy was anathema to Washington.

Imran Khan refused to recognize cruel and apartheid settler entity Israel   as a legitimate state .He  improved ties with Russia for straightforward reasons of economic necessity (as well as promoting the geostrategic stability in the broader Central Asian region).

Khan mended ties and cooperated with Iran. He strengthened ties with China while   repeatedly stating he desired friendly relations with Washington, proposing that they work together in peace building in Afghanistan and the wider region.

Pakistan has been a close ally of China since the 1960s. But Islamabad’s intense obsession with pleasing Washington is a flagrant slap in the face of Beijing. He even sent overtures to India to solve Kashmir issue peacefully.

Imran Khan who started emerging fast as the voice of Muslim issues worldwide, replacing the aging and fading Dr Mahathir’ who single handedly spoke for Muslims, especially Palestinians, worldwide.  Together with Dr   Mahathir and Turkish President Erdogan he tried to form an Islamic bloc to bring Muslims worldwide together.

During the   conference of Organization of Islamic Countries, OIC, in Islamabad, Imran was the only one to bravely point out that the Muslim world has failed on Palestine and Kashmir Issues. Imran Khan’s rising voice of Muslims issues began to attract Muslims worldwide. This voice need to be suppressed. Thus the no confidence motion against him. 

Two once rival feudal families, sheriffs and Bhuttos, fully backed by United States ,decided to remove him from politics and organized a vote of no confidence  motion in the parliament .They bribed most of Imran Khan’ s  party  MPs  and defeated Imran Khan. According to   reports no confidence motion was a US backed conspiracy to silence the emerging voice of Muslims.

Khan accused US of meddling in Pakistan’s affairs and alleged that the opposition   conspired with Washington to remove him because he would not take the side of the US and Europe on global issues against Russia and China

Shehbaz Sharif, brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sheriff who was removed from office on corruption charges, was installed as prime minister.  Angry Imran Khan’s supporters   attacked  Imran Khan’s party MPs who voted v  against Imran.

Since then Khan has been holding countrywide protests to push the government for early elections, due no later than in October, pulling out of parliament and dissolving the two provincial assemblies his party controlled in a bid to force the government’s hand.

On Monday 20 March protest  in support of Imran Khan was held at London home of Nawaz Sheriff.

Meanwhile the unelected Shehbaz Sheriff government is hell bent on banning Khan from public life and even banned the media from publishing anything about Imran Khan. The government was so desperate that   more than 90   corruption cases were filed against Imran.

The question is whether Sheriffs and Bhutto could speak about corruption.

Assassinated Prime Minister Zulficar Ali’ Bhutto’s role in the breakup of Pakistan in 1970 has been common knowledge. So much so Bhutto used to keep Hamoodur Rahman report on the breakup of Pakistan under his pillow to ensure it doesn’t reach anyone. Perhaps this was the reason why General Zia Ul Haq hanged  Bhutto.

Late Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was also accused of corruption while her husband Asif Ali Zardari was called Mr Ten Percent. Under such circumstance how could Sheriff and Bhuttos who dominate the US installed unelected government could talk of corruption.

“All what the government wanted is to put me in jail or kill and eliminate from the political scene”, said Imran Khan the day his house in Lahore was attacked and vandalized without a warrant. When Imran’s sister asked the policy whether they got a warrant   their response was” we do not need it”. The message was clear.

However Imran remains the most popular politician as demonstrated by the vast majority of his supporters.  Under such circumstanced the arrest of Imran Khan could trigger countrywide  demonstrations with unpredictable consequences.

The question is whether the unelected government could afford such a crisis.

According to a report in the website Middle East Eye    “the delay in implementing IMF reforms is because the political elite wants to avoid them – deep-set corruption in government is at the heart of It.    A culture of “zero accountability has completely wrecked trust in Pakistani leadership, at home and abroad”.

He added that “Pakistan is ranked 140 on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index for 2022, not a favorable ranking if the country wants to attract foreign investment. Pakistan has the largest cabinet in the world –They all enjoy perks not realizing the plight of people in the country. More than 30 million flood affected Pakistanis continue to suffer without food, shelter and other essential. The need of the hour is to concentrate on the”.

On the other hand the powerful and hostile regional and global forces which divided Pakistan and created Bangladesh are still active-perhaps to divide Pakistan into four different provinces.  It appears unelected Shariff government seems to be playing into their conspiracies.