Pak military establishment mulling 'soft intervention' amid deepening political, economic crisis: Report
(L) Imran Khan and PM Shehbaz Sharif
Amidst political and economic crises, the all-powerful Pakistan military establishment is planning on “soft intervention” wherein it would play a mediating role between former PM and PTI chairman Imran Khan and the ruling coalition parties — PML-N, PPP, JUI-F, and others — Geo News reported quoting sources.
The report indicated that there are chances of a “grand dialogue” between the opposition and the government.
Though there is no official confirmation, reports suggest that the ousted prime minister is open to a dialogue.
Senior journalist Suhail Warraich told Geo News that he met Khan and “he is ready for negotiations” with the coalition government on three issues: elections and election reforms, the economic agenda and the appointment of the army chief.
Pakistan has plunged into political chaos ever since Imran Khan was stripped of his post after he lost the no-confidence motion.
There have been incidents of political parties often approaching courts over political problems, with the latest being the Punjab episode, where Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s son Hamza Shahbaz took oath as the chief minister twice with his appointment challenged time and again in the courts.
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Moreover, there are talks of holding the next general elections sometime in October.
The political instability has also precipitated the economic downfall of Pakistan, whose currency continues its downward trend against the US dollar. The Pakistan Stock Exchange has also been witnessing constant plunges in recent sessions, both markets recording historic lows.
Punjab by-elections conundrum
The present political crisis stems from the recently concluded Punjab by-elections for the post of the chief minister.
Pakistan PM Sharif’s son Hamza was declared the winner even though his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party did not have a majority in the assembly in the July 17 polls.
Hamza managed to retain the post of CM by the barest of margins after Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari rejected 10 votes of his rival candidate Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi’s party Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q), an ally of Khan, citing Article 63-A of the Constitution.
In the 368-member Punjab Assembly, Hamza’s PML-N got 179 votes, whereas Elahi’s party garnered 176 votes.
Ten votes of Elahi’s PML-Q were not counted because they had violated the orders of their party chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain.
The move to discredit the 10 votes triggered a sharp reaction from the PTI-PMLQ lawmakers who protested against the deputy speaker.
On late Friday night, countrywide demonstrations were held across Pakistan by the supporters of Khan against what they called the “illegal” election of the chief minister.
PTI said that it would approach the Supreme Court to challenge the decision.
(With inputs from agencies)
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