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March 27, 2022

No-Trust Vote: Imran Khan takes the battle to the 'court of people'

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No-Trust Vote: Imran Khan takes the battle to the 'court of people'
ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: Prime Minister on Sunday took the no trust motion to the court of the people by addressing a huge gathering of the faithful in the federal capital in a last-ditch effort to muster support from "a sea of the people" which thronged the capital roads despite rising inflation and purported misgovernance appears to be grown increasingly distrustful of the unified opposition facing a plethora of corruption charges. Designed to precede voting on the no-confidence motion tabled against Imran Khan, the much-hyped power show, Amr-bil-Maroof (enjoining good), exhibited that the people of Pakistan still stood by the beleaguered prime minister, the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party despite financial odds. "It's a battle for the survival of Pakistan [...] not of PTI government," Khan said in an audio message shared by the party on Twitter. The meeting is a referendum in favour of Khan and his "independent foreign policy", Ali Nawaz Awan, a ruling MP, said. Last year, Khan, a fierce critic of American military adventures in Afghanistan and the decision by President Pervez Musharraf's government to join forces with Washington on latter's War on Terror, refused point-blank when asked if he'd allow the use of Pakistan's territory to the United States for counter-terror operations inside the war-torn nation. He has since then cemented the relationship with China; visited Russia, incidentally, on the eve of its invasion of Ukraine; and hit out at Islamabad-based Western diplomats who urged Pakistan to condemn Moscow's actions in the Eastern European country, asking them if they thought Islamabad was their "slave". The prime minister's detractors claim Khan and his government has turned to the tried and tested strategy of West-bashing in hopes of winning him support.

Part of the narrative being pushed by Khan is the vote of no confidence is part of a conspiracy by foreign powers to topple his government. Last week, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told a press conference he had intelligence the vote of no confidence was happening at the behest of imperialist powers.

"Imran Khan is a savour of Pakistan [...] he pursued an independent policy," Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry said in a video message. "Join him in saving Pakistan." "It's not just another jalsa [...] history is going to be created today," tweeted Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar. Awan said arrangements had almost been finalised for the public gathering. Interestingly, a PTI spokesperson Saturday night announced the media would not be allowed to use private cameras to record the event as “they (camera) posed a security risk”. But, today, Chaudhry, the minister, disclosed that "entire Pakistani media" and over 43 journalists representing international press organisations are present in the Parade Ground to cover the event. Meanwhile, under the banner of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), activists and leaders of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) have also come to take the stage on the Srinagar Highway while Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz, along with her cousin Hamza Shehbaz is leading her party caravan through G.T. Road to the capital. [caption id="attachment_180158" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Leader of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Maryam Nawaz (R) and her cousin Hamza Shahbaz (C) waves towards the supporters upon the start of the anti-government march toward Islamabad from Lahore on March 26, 2022. — ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images[/caption] On Saturday, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed said the Srinagar Highway had been handed over to Pakistan Rangers and Frontier Corps, saying that in all 15,000 personnel would be performing security duty. He said the government had also the authority to call the Army under Article 245 of the Constitution, if need be, but expressed hope the situation would not reach a point where the ministry was compelled to take extreme steps.
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