ISLAMABAD - Imran Khan is a strange phenomenon in Pakistani politics. Unorthodox, sentimental, brave – a recipe for disaster in modern day pragmatic politics as some old guards may put it. But this man bounces from the brink against odds as he takes the initiative, and somehow, lady luck smiles on him.
Khan hit a major road block and resultant emotional lows when he could not become the chief executive of the country just when his emotional fans started believing that his election campaign injury might bag them sympathy votes in a big way. The (political) tsunami, as Khan predicted, didn’t sweep rest of the country in the absence of proper political work in towns and villages. But short of Punjab and Sindh, he managed to deliver Khyber Pakhtukhwa (KP), devastated by ruthless Pakistani Taliban and corrupt yet inefficient amalgam of ANP and PPP (2008-13). Khan grabbed the KP province against heavy odds; the same he is ready to sacrifice, as he kick-starts, may be decisive, anti-American drone campaign in that province after Ashura of Muharram. Pervaiz Khattak, the chief minister of the province, may be having nightmares these days, but knows his political limits. And when Khan, their supreme leader, makes up his mind, no one can dare challenge him in the Insafiyan camp.
The other day, he came up with a November 20 deadline for the Sharif-led dispensation to act against the NATO supplies, and everyone thought it wasn’t workable. The very next day, we saw his compulsory haters – the Maulana from DI Khan and Farooq Bhai from Karachi – complaining about the political solo flight Khan plans in end November. At least, if need be, he will symbolically block the Khyber NATO supply route for a few days, like he marched onto Waziristan earlier this year against the drone strikes.
Tucked safely on the government benches for yet another stint, JUI-F and MQM rightly feel they are left back, politically. Maulana Fazlur Rehman has not fully healed from the recent election defeat his brother suffered facing PTI. And MQM too, embroiled in a deep ethno-political controversy with PPP in the Sindh province, is in search of an effective political move to bounce back. Altaf Bhai’s return could be a game changer, but they don’t want him back even after the lapse of two decades for fear of his life.
Irony isn’t it that, despite winning a thumping majority from Karachi in the elections 2013, the party is still trying hard to justify it. And when thousands of bogus votes cast in a constituency are pinpointed lately, every lieutenant of Altaf Bhai cries foul. Musharraf era was their best inning so far. They were in full control. The Zardari rule was dodgy, but they stuck to government benches in the province and Centre till the last. And then this challenging PTI factor landed. The National Assembly seat lost to PTI’s Alvi could be feared beginning of the end; brainy Altaf Bhai fans won’t utter openly. Maulana faces the same problem in KPK though he enjoys scattered pockets of support. Imran’s latest political challenge seems a double-edge sword for the old religio-political guru. How pragmatic he may be, the JUI cannot afford a pro American stance in that province. And what if Imran leaves the government? Will Maulana fill the void, join hands with PML-N in that province and support the central government on uninterrupted supply for Nato through KPK and Balochistan?
Everyone has to grind his own axe in these tough times, but the buck stops at Premier Sharif and his brainy aides for now. They cannot afford annoying Americans and lose a big chuck of military and civil aid at a time when the economy is in a shambles and inflation has hit had its lower middle to middle class vote bank. Premier Sharif had this picture in mind when he told a military ceremony the other day that he can take independent decisions, in a sharp deviation from the past when the country took a U turn (Musharraf era) on a single call (American ultimatum to Pakistan after 9/11). We are here loud and clear from the premier and his advisers that everyone (including the garrison) is on board when it comes to negotiations with TTP. The (elected) son of Rawalpindi disagrees and, on the floor of the National Assembly, Rashid fired these warning shots as Sharif ponders over the top military appointments. some critics believe these are being delayed for lack of decision on part of the premier who has to make a choice between wishes of the garrison (seniority list wise number one, two) or a more American friendly choice at number 4.
The premier and his team must not take Sheikh Rashid as a spoiler, loner or a media monger. The man has gone through think and thin of street politics, palace intrigues and close proximity with the garrison finally landed him in the Musharraf camp. Lal Masjid and pro-American stance of Musharraf handed Rashid and his ilk with the worst-ever election defeat of his political life in 2008. But the man is relentless, a shrewd political gamer. Just when everyone thought elections 2013 would mark his election defeat hat trick, he made it to the Lower House of Parliament in a big way. For this, he had to ride the strong shoulders of Imran Khan, but the action plan was totally Rashid’s. He is a serious customer; no one should dismiss him as a lead role of news channel talk shows. The old guard has bounced back in the Lower House.
Another diminishing star is trying to do the same in his own way in the Upper House. He is none other than Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan. Once upon a time, he was labeled as leader material. Not anymore. A fine orator, a top lawyer, a politician, a legislator, a former federal interior minister with a fine database and what not. Luck landed him finally in leadership role in early 2007 as the military dictator made the biggest mistake of his era – to depose the top judge followed by proclamation of emergency. Senator Aitzaz Ahsan must be missing the good old days when legislators, lawyers and civil society used to envy his leadership and stance against Musharraf and his ilk. Gone are those days. Politically, he seems to have lost it in a big way when he chose to defend PPP’s Gillani, allegedly on prompting from a bigwig property tycoon. In his latest efforts to bounce back, Aitzaz is pouncing desperately on every chance to prove his worth to the father-son duo at the helm of PPP affairs. See what a political stir the shrewd lawyer and politician in Aitzaz created at the time of the presidential elections in August. In the political point-scoring spree, he wanted to make Raza Rabbani, the man Zardari Sahib didn’t choose for the Senate chairman slot two times in his era, a consensus candidate even when he knew PML-N had easy majority. Then he made fuss out of the presidential election schedule change authenticated by the apex court; and now this Chaudhry Nisar’s apology saga. The Rajput from Chakri dragged the issue unnecessarily, and the Jatt from Lahore (originally Gujrat) pounced on it unwittingly. As Aitzaz holds a symbolic Senate session on Constitution Avenue outside the Parliament House to make it a headline event, let us hope his party’s chairman and deputy chairman of the Senate will chair the proceedings. Short of this, it may be a one or a two-day fanfare. Remember Sikandar revolt in blue area in this summer.