Dr Ved Pratap Vaidik
The beleaguered Pak Prime Minister Imran Khan did the same, as I postulated in my article the other day. Khan managed to get the no-confidence motion moved against him rejected. Not just that, Khan also dissolved the National Assembly (Parliament) and announced general elections. As per his declaration, we may presume, elections will be held after 90 days. Imran Khan had rightly said that he did not lose the battle. He had a trump card up his sleeves and he played it with precision. Of course, petitions are expected to be filed against Imran Khan in the Pak Supreme Court in the coming days.
But what can the court do now? The Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly has rejected the no-confidence motion. The President dissolved the Parliament and declared general election. In such a situation, only if the Army takes a contradictory posture, then only Imran’s fate can be reversed. It is a fact; Army is the real master of Pakistan. If the Army wishes it can oust the President, the Prime Minister, the Parliament, the Government and even the Judiciary, in Pakistan. But I genuinely doubt the Army would resort to such an adventure, because Pak Army Chief General Qamar Bajwa, though all powerful, is seen behaving sensible.
The other day Bajwa said in a function that he was desirous to solve the problem of Kashmir through dialogue. If India is willing, Pakistan will make no delay. In Imran’s case, things are in progress as he desired. Now Imran Khan is just a caretaker prime minister. Khan cannot take decisions on many issues. He had made a clarion call to the Youth of Pakistan to assemble in lakhs and cordon the Parliament.
The Opposition alleges that their MPs are being blocked from entering the Parliament House. But Imran no longer needed to block entry of rival MPs into the Parliament House. One of his ministers accused that the Opposition was plotting to assassinate Imran Khan, because the people of Pakistan have decided to defeat the unholy alliance of the opposition parties and the turncoat leaders in the coming general election. There is some merit in this argument, but the people of Pakistan have been so frustrated due to escalating inflation and epidemic and they were increasingly disenchanted with the Imran regime.
Imran’s outspokenness may also have cost him dearly. Once he was so annoyed at a question relating to inflation and retorted with irritation that the job of the Prime Minister was not to control the prices of tomatoes and carrots. He has also incensed many in Pakistan by openly praising Indian foreign policy. In the recent past he has done that twice. Both in Pakistan and India, to score political brownie points it is a must for the netas resort to virulent vocal bashing of the rival countries.
In the past few days Imran Khan has been profusely praising the neutrality of Pakistan Army. But I prudently wonder, if he was so confident of the Army support why the need to go for elections? It is pathetically pitiable; in Pakistan politics is always wobbly and unpredictably volatile.
*Dr. Vaidik is a widely travelled scholar-journalist. He has visited more than 80 countries on diplomatic and educational missions. Dr. Vaidik has won more than a dozen National and International awards for academic and journalistic excellence. He has been a member of several Advisory Committees of Government of India.
