Imran khan booked under anti terror law has turned against his 2018 benefactors plays to tensions within army

Imran khan booked under anti terror law has turned against his 2018 benefactors plays to tensions within army

The political turmoil in Pakistan that began with Imran Khan’s allegation that he had been removed as prime minister by a US-hatched conspiracy has escalated. The former prime minister and leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has been booked under the country’s anti-terror law after he spoke at a public meeting asking the army to side with him in his battle to return as prime minister, though what exactly attracts the terrorism charge is still unclear. A court has granted him protection from arrest until August 25. An aide was arrested last week for comments allegedly seeking to incite a mutiny in the army. The present turbulence reflects a recurring theme in Pakistan’s politics — the army is still the final decider of political fortunes. Khan has now given this situation an ironic twist. Elected by the strenuous efforts of the army and the ISI — they worked overtime to engineer his victory — Khan has now turned against his 2018 benefactors. By appealing to the “neutrals” — Khan’s term for the military establishment — to support him, the ousted PM is now playing to the tensions within the army. General Qamar Javed Bajwa is due to retire as army chief in November this year. Khan has, more or less, accused Bajwa of being a key player in his removal, and wants to see his back to ensure his own return, electorally or otherwise. Khan and his followers claim that many in the army’s middle rungs support him, not their own chief.

This would be treading dangerous territory in civil-military relations anywhere, but more so in Pakistan. As Khan demonstrated during his removal by a no-confidence vote, he is going for broke. Nothing is off limits. In a country where anti-American sentiment runs high, his pitch has won him much support, as seen in the PTI’s victories in by-elections to the Punjab Assembly, which helped the party wrest it back from the ruling PML(N). The crowds at Khan’s rallies have been swelling with every meeting. He may also have touched a chord within some sections of the army. There is another irony. Khan calls his opponents “thieves” for their alleged corruption, and led the charge against Nawaz Sharif that eventually cost the latter his prime ministership in 2016 and earned him a permanent disqualification from holding elected office. But he and his supporters dismiss the charge, upheld recently by the Pakistan Election Commission, that the PTI benefited from illegal foreign funding. This could end in disqualification for Khan and his party.

Against this complex background, the move to slap Khan with a terrorism charge, perhaps to be followed by an arrest, may end up making a political martyr of him, especially if the dots connect to the army. Already, the government is in the dock for its high-handed measures against pro-Khan journalists and TV channels. As Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif tries to stabilise the economy, and his government imposes unpopular measures in return for an IMF bailout, his government is certainly not getting more popular. The Pakistan Army, too, may emerge weaker from the political turbulence. An institutional response to protect itself could be the game-changer, with possible ramifications for not just Pakistan but the entire region.