The loose cannon

While the emergence of privately owned electronic as well as social media can be rightly termed as the best thing that has ever happened to the media landscape in Pakistan, there is also a downside to it. The expansion has been so quick that it provided an opportunity to even those persons who never had any inkling of journalism, or a journalistic background, to sneak in and occupy positions crucially important to mould or influence public opinion.

They are using their position to advance agendas of their own or those who are their financiers. Some of them are feverishly engaged in distorting history, denigrating the benefactors of Pakistan and promoting fissiparous tendencies in the society. One such person is Orya Maqbool Jan, a retired bureaucrat turned religious scholar, and a self-styled journalist with strong affiliation with PTI.

I wonder how a person like Orya, in spite of knowing all these things, could be so naïve as to make a comparison between the Quaid-i-Azam and Imran Khan. I am sure it is a well thought-out indiscretion to pollute the minds of the people and belittle the stature of the Father of the Nation. To me it is a sinful and criminal act and he should not be allowed to go scot-free in the name of freedom of expression

In his sermons he is often heard challenging the traditional wisdom,  societal intelligence,  political values and saying weird things that hurt the sentiment of millions across the country. He is like a loose cannon relishing distortion of historical realities. Well there is no harm if you like a political leader and say things to promote his narrative and agenda when you are aligned with his party, but when you cross the red line by putting that leader above the Father of the Nation it exhibits conspiratorial streak.

Reportedly, while praising Imran Khan as a leader destined to lead Pakistan to a new glory, he tried to compare him with Quaid-i-Azam and remarked that the former was a greater leader than the latter as far as popularity was concerned. That surely is a preposterous and outrageous contention and has hurt the sentiments of millions of Pakistanis.

No wonder then that a member of the National Assembly who listened to a vlog of a journalist wherein he revealed this indiscretion of Orya Maqbool Jan. rose on a point or order on the floor of the National  Assembly, condemned his remarks in the harshest words, and asked the Speaker to initiate appropriate action against Orya. The Speaker has rightly sent it to the Privileges Committee of the House which will deliberate on it and then make recommendations for action against Orya Maqbool Jan as it deems necessary.

Imran Khan undoubtedly has considerable following in the country though for all the wrong reasons, and nobody believing in people’s right to make their own choices, can grudge his standing and worship by his diehard supporters. But it would be intellectual dishonesty on anyone’s part to compare him with the Father and benefactor of the Nation— who was an undisputed leader of the Muslims across the Indian sub-continent— and rate him above the stature and popularity of the Quaid.

While the entire nation pays homage to him and expresses unqualified gratitude to him for carving out a homeland for the Muslims, Imran cannot claim the backing of the entire Pakistani nation as was also reflected in the elections 2018 which were decidedly rigged in his favour but in which he still got less votes than his opponents. He was able to form the government with the support of the establishment and the allies which were thrown into his lap through coercion and bribery.

Imran’s involvement in a conspiracy to remove Nawaz from power and reaching in the corridors of power riding on the shoulders of the establishment is now a proven reality. Can a conscientious and upright leader imagine indulging in such pursuits?. Certainly not! I am sure the myth of his being more popular than the Quaid will be exploded whenever the elections are held in the country.

Even in regards to political achievements and personal traits Imran Khan is nowhere near the Father of the Nation. The Quaid-i-Azam created Pakistan and united the Muslims of the Subcontinent while Imran has divided the nation and introduced an element of violence in politics.The Quaid was a man of principle, probity, integrity and moral uprightness. His only passion was to create a homeland for Muslims of the Subcontinent. He was softspoken, temperate and humane. He interacted with people in a dignified and graceful way worth emulating by those who idolized him. He was a known constitutionalist and acknowledged so across all the spectra of the Indian population. His entire struggle was peaceful and structured around constitutional norms. Imran decidedly is bereft of all these qualities. And do not forget that he is a known playboy and a father of an illegitimate child born out of wedlock.

Great leaders possess sublimity of language, sobriety of tone and tenor and decency of gesture and are seen as the image of the nation they represent. As against it Imran cannot control the propensity to pass derogatory personal remarks against his political rivals. He relishes digressive rambling and in a fit of oratory says things which fail the test of civility and decency.

He also exhibits a streak of despotism portraying him as too haughty and domineering who behaves like a typical despot. His rigidity and delusional hubris cast a dark shadow on his credentials as a political leader believing in democratic norms. During his three and half years rule he implicated his opponents in false cases and never tried to build working relations with the opposition which is an indispensable proposition in a democratic dispensation.

I wonder how a person like Orya, in spite of knowing all these things, could be so naïve as to make a comparison between the Quaid-i-Azam and Imran Khan. I am sure it is a well thought-out indiscretion to pollute the minds of the people and belittle the stature of the Father of the Nation. To me it is a sinful and criminal act and he should not be allowed to go scot-free in the name of freedom of expression.