Written by Asif Haroon Recollection by Ch. Muhammad Natiq (Chief Editor – Editorial and Commentary TNMN).
Noted columnist Imtiaz Gul has written a detailed letter to Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa reminding him of his obligation to intervene in the Punjab politics where according to him the govt in power has made up a plan to upset the CM Punjab election scheduled on 22 July 2022. To reinforce his apprehension, he has quoted two statements of the interior minister Sanaullah.
The latter had earlier stated that on 25 May, spent tear gas shells were used to disperse the violent crowd of the PTI trying to seize D Choke in contravention to the Isbd high court ruling, and added that in case the PTI resorted to violence and disturb law and order, fresh tear gas shells will be used. Two days earlier, in his interview with a TV anchor he fleetingly made mentioned that considering the narrow margin of seats between the two sides, the outcome could be different if five MPAs decided to absent themselves on the day of voting.
These two press statements have upset Imtiaz Gul so deeply that he decided to bring the matter to the notice of the COAS and get counted as a diehard PTI fan. His letter is in wide circulation on social media, and someone sent me a copy as well asking me to share it. Why does he forgets the volatile statements of Sheikh Rashid, Shabaz Gill and several other hawkish leaders of the PTI including IK who remain in the forefront? Why has he forgotten about the harsh response of the PTI regime against the TLP?
Has he forgotten the drama staged by the PTI, PPP, and Establishment to depose the Sanaullah Zehri govt in Baluchistan? What about the election of the Chairman Senate and the failure of the no-trust motion against Sanjrani when the opposition had a clear majority?
Did those acts not flout the constitution and rule of law?
Should Imtiaz Gul not be happy that the LHC has promptly summoned the interior minister today in response to the petition of Pervez Elahi. Imtiaz Gul is provoking Gen Bajwa to intervene and sort out the ruling regime for the sake of political stability.
He ignores that the establishment is repeatedly asserting that it will remain neutral in political matters as it had demonstrated on 17 July. On what basis Imtiaz and his like-minded friends are so sure that the PTI will ensure political stability and economic uplift once it returns to power. Its performance in its 4 years rule was dismal and it cannot absolve itself of the current downside in the economy.
Let us be honest and judge as to who is fond of the politics of agitation and in arousing the emotions of the people, in making haywire accusations without substantiating them and antagonising everyone for the sake of self-glory?
Having won the by-elections in Punjab, why didn’t IK extend the apology to all those he had vehemently accused of rigging? And why is he still forcing the Chairman ECP to resign? Why doesn’t he trust anyone?
Are his tactics and policies conducive to saving Pakistan from default?
How is PTI better than any other party? Half of the senior leaders are selectable from the PPP and PML N and the majority of his advisers were imported from abroad.
Was the victory of PTI in Punjab in 2018 genuine!
Who created the fuss in Punjab in April 2022. If PTI MNAs and MPAs defected, what was so unusual? Was the regime change unusual?
What catastrophe fell upon IK after he was voted out of power?
Compare it with what ZA Bhutto, Benazir and Nawaz Sharif had suffered once they were deposed.
Why the onus of political stability should be on the incumbent govt which has managed to bail out Pakistan from sure default, and why not the PTI which doesn’t believe in dialogue and cooperation?
So let us see the picture from both sides.
