The habitual turmoil of Pakistani politics took a decidedly dangerous turn last week, with assassination attempt on his former prime minister imran khanWhich was removed seven months ago. Mr Khan escaped with a leg injury after a gunman opened fire. At a press conference a day later, Mr Khan accused the government and the military of plotting to kill him. Mr Khan, who had previously called for comparisons between himself and former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was hanged in 1979 – a popular leader whose mandate is being obstructed by power – even as Bangladesh’s The example of founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was also brought up. Prime Minister Sharif and the military have both denied Mr Khan’s allegations, but it is hard to deny the growing problem he is now posing. Since April, when he was forced to step down after a trust vote in parliament, and after losing all court appeals, he has taken to the streets demanding an immediate general election. He has been vocal about the military’s political role, accusing “Dirty Harry” of imprisoning and torturing his supporters in the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, and ridiculing Army Chief General Bajwa , whose term ends this month, to suggest the military will maintain a “neutral” role. There have been side effects. In September, he was charged with contempt of court for accusing the High Court of Judiciary, and although the terror charges against him were dropped, he was convicted of threatening to prosecute government officials. faced charges. In October, the Election Commission convicted him of a case involving undeclared official gifts and disqualified him from holding public office; He may face a legal challenge to his seat in Parliament for defaming the judiciary and the armed forces.
For the Sharif government, which is already grappling with devastating floods, the security crisis emanating from Afghanistan, a growing economic crisis and increasingly poor relations with India that have stagnated much-needed trade revenues, Mr. Khan’s challenge cannot be one. It was a worse time. Mr. Sharif, who is making several foreign visits, should look at the domestic situation, and investigate the attack on Mr. Khan in a concrete way, if he wants to bolster his credibility. Despite several setbacks, Mr. Khan’s popularity remains strong; He won six of the eight by-elections last month. Following the assassination attempt, PTI protesters marched in Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Quetta and Karachi. If the impasse continues, the biggest concern for the government is maintaining law and order. In that case, in a country that has always suffered from a lack of democracy, an early election may prove to be the only prudent way forward.