Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced on Wednesday that the price of petrol was being reduced by Rs8 and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs5 per litre for the next fortnight.
The new prices of petrol and HSD are Rs262 and Rs253 per litre, respectively.
The price of light diesel oil (LDO) was also slashed by Rs5 per litre to Rs147.68 while the price for kerosene oil remained unchanged at Rs164.07.
In a video address, he said that there was no substantial change in the international prices of petroleum products in the last 15 days and neither had the rupee appreciated against the dollar.
“But the government tried to create as much room as possible to provide relief to the people,” the finance minister said.
The cuts come on the heels of a previous round of price reductions in the prices of petrol, HSD and LDO on May 15 by Rs12, Rs30 and Rs12, respectively.
While announcing these cuts in prices, Dar had also requested transporters and other departments that use diesel to forward relief to the public in the form of lower fares so that every segment of the economy could benefit from the development.
Kosovo’s top Olympic body said on Wednesday it had asked the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to open disciplinary proceedings against Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic over his public statements on clashes in the country.
On Monday, after confrontations began between ethnic Albanians and Serbs, Djokovic scrawled the message “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence” on a camera following his victory in the opening round of Roland Garros.
A Kosovo Olympic Committee (KOC) spokesman told AFP on Wednesday that Djokovic was “stirring up” political tensions.
Djokovic “breached the fundamental principles of the Olympic Charter regarding political neutrality and involved yet another political statement in sports”, the KOC wrote in a letter sent to the IOC on Tuesday.
KOC head Ismet Krasniqi asked the IOC to initiate disciplinary proceedings against Djokovic, an Olympic bronze medallist in 2008, said the letter posted on its Facebook page.
Such “behaviour cannot be tolerated as it sets a dangerous precedent that sports can be used as a platform for political messages, agendas and propaganda”, the letter quoted Krasniqi as saying.
Djokovic defended his message in comments to Serb media, saying that Kosovo is Serbia’s “cradle, our stronghold”.
Meanwhile, the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the governing body of the sport, said they had received a request from the Kosovo Tennis Federation that Djokovic be sanctioned.
However, they pointed out that “political statements” are not banned at Grand Slam events.
Thirty peacekeepers from a Nato-led force in Kosovo and over 50 demonstrators were injured in clashes during protests about the installation of ethnic Albanian mayors in northern Kosovo.
The situation remained tense on Wednesday as ethnic Serbs demand the withdrawal of the mayors in four northern municipalities and Kosovo police sent to support them as they take office.
Ethnic-Albanian majority Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 but its Serb minority remains largely loyal to Belgrade.
• WFP, FAO report notes $77.5bn to be repaid over next three years
• Political instability, lack of IMF deal to hit ability to import food
ISLAMABAD: Acute food insecurity in Pakistan is likely to further exacerbate in coming months if the economic and political crisis further worsens, compounding the effects of the 2022 floods, warns a new United Nations report published on Monday.
The report titled, Hunger Hotspots: FAO-WFP early warnings on acute food insecurity, jointly published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) covers the June to November 2023 period.
It notes that amid the current global economic slowdown, mounting public debt has exacerbated the ongoing financial crisis in Pakistan. It points out that authorities will have to repay $77.5 billion external debt between April 2023 and June 2026, a substantial amount considering the country’s GDP of $350bn in 2021.
Growing political instability and lagging reforms prevent the release of a crucial new credit line from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and additional support from bilateral partners, the report says.
The political crisis and civil unrest are likely to worsen ahead of general elections scheduled for October 2023, amid growing insecurity in the northwest of the country. A shortage of foreign reserves and a depreciating currency are diminishing the country’s ability to import essential food items and energy supplies and increasing food items’ prices besides causing nationwide energy cuts, the report says.
The situation has been compounded by effects of last year’s floods which caused damages and economic losses of Rs30bn to the agriculture sector.
According to the report, over 8.5 million people were likely to experience high levels of acute food insecurity between September and December 2022.
The food insecurity and malnutrition situation is likely to worsen in the outlook period, as economic and political crises are reducing households’ purchasing power and ability to buy food and other essential goods, it notes.
The likely deterioration to the food security situation in the projection period is due to the devastating impact of floods, which caused livestock losses and adversely affected food production and availability of food and livelihood opportunities.
It also notes that Afghanistan’s coal and food export revenues could drop if the economic and political crisis in Pakistan — Kabul’s main trading partner — and the security situation in border areas continues to deteriorate.
The report has called for building the capacity of national and provincial disaster management authorities to include forecast-based financing and risk insurance as part of disaster management and sectoral contingency plans.
Among the actions recommended by the report are strengthening the shock-responsive nature of existing social protection mechanisms (such as the Benazir Income Support Programme) to ensure effective anticipatory action and humanitarian response through social protection systems.
The two UN agencies further warn that acute food insecurity is likely to deteriorate further in 81 hunger spots — comprising a total of 22 countries during the outlook period from June to November 2023.
Afghanistan, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen remain at the highest concern level. Haiti, the Sahel (Burkina Faso and Mali) and the Sudan have been elevated to the highest concern levels. This is due to severe movement restrictions of people and goods in Haiti, as well as in Burkina Faso and Mali, and the recent eruption of conflict in the Sudan.
All the hotspots at the highest level have populations facing or projected to face starvation or are at risk of deterioration towards catastrophic conditions, given they have already critical food insecurity and are facing severe aggravating factors. These countries require the most urgent attention.
Pakistan, the Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Kenya, Congo and Syria are hotspots with very high concern, and the warning is also extended to Myanmar.
Published in Dawn, May 30th, 2023
Lahore: A joint investigation team (JIT) probing the attack on Lahore Corps Commander House (Jinnah House) on May 9 has summoned PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday (today).
Mr Khan has been asked to appear before the JIT at 4pm at the Qilla Gujjar police headquarters.
He has been called for questioning in a case registered with the Sarwar Road police station against the attack.
Mr Khan has been nominated in the case for allegedly abetting the attackers who ransacked and set fire to the Jinnah House when he was in prison.
“Imran Khan is required to attend the office of the DIG Investigation to join the investigation proceedings entrusted to the JTI formed by the Punjab government,” reads the summon notice issued by Lahore DIG (investigation) Kamran Adil, who is heading the JIT.
Lahore police chief Bilal Siddique Kamyana confirmed that the PTI chief has been summoned for questioning.
An official source said that the former prime minister will be questioned to determine the scale of his involvement in the attack.
He added that a number of other senior PTI leaders and activists have been nominated in the FIR.
Imran Khan was summoned after Lahore SSP (investigation) Dr Anoosh Masood visited Kot Lakhpat jail on Monday where PTI leader Dr Yasmin Rashid and fashion designer Khadija Shah are being held. They were arrested in connection with the attack.
The SSP’s visit came after Imran Khan accused the caretaker Punjab government of “maltreating PTI’s women supporters who were in prison”.
“I have heard about the rape of PTI women political prisoners,” he said on Sunday without providing any evidence.
SSP Anoosh Masood is also heading one of the 53 JITs, notified by the Punjab government comprising police officers, to conduct and finalise investigations into the cases registered in the aftermath of the May 9 attacks across the province.
She will probe the attacks on police, Askari Tower and other sensitive installations.
Published in Dawn, May 30th, 2023
• Dar says negotiations possible if Imran admits mistakes, apologises to nation
• Saad Rafique says no space for dialogue in present situation
LAHORE: The ambiguities of government policy over talks with the PTI came into sharp focus on Sunday, with a key minister flatly ruling out the possibility of negotiations in a post-May 9 scenario while another hinting at a way out if Imran Khan apologises and repents.
Talking at the Geo News programme Jirga, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said negotiations with Mr Khan could be held if he took “corrective measures”, apologises to the nation, admits his mistake and promises not to do anything like May 9 in the future.
The minister said that before that fateful day — when violent protests erupted across the country after Mr Khan’s arrest — the government negotiated with PTI with “sincere intentions” and the two sides agreed on all matters except the date of election.
He said peaceful protest was everyone’s right, but attacks on armed forces’ installations should not be condoned.
Meanwhile, in Lahore, Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique said there was no way talks could be held with the PTI in the current situation.
“There used to be an environment and agenda for holding parleys on any issue. But the existing atmosphere is not suitable for talks,” he told reporters, adding that no one would like to hold dialogue with the talks committee formed by Mr Khan.
Mr Rafique was probably referring to the seven-member committee that the former prime minister appointed on Saturday.
The minister said he always supported negotiations despite several differences with the PTI. He said the government attempted to engage in dialogue and both sides even agreed on several issues, including simultaneous elections.
However, when the government’s team contacted Mr Khan, the PTI chief refused to accept any of the points, Mr Rafique said, adding: “Now, after all that bullying, there is no space for dialogue.”
The minister, who was talking to the media after visiting the Lahore corps commander’s residence, also known as Jinnah House, said that a tragedy took place at the venue on May 9.
He regretted that valuable things “preserved” at the site, including the Quaid-i-Azam’s room, his writing table, and handwritten notes, were damaged and burnt on that fateful day.
He alleged that the PTI leadership and ticket-holders were involved in the arson despite knowing about the sanctity of the installation. “This fire did not erupt because of petrol or matchbox, but chemicals,” he claimed.
The railways minister also claimed that Mr Khan “poisoned the minds of the youth and sowed the seeds of hatred in their minds for years”.
He recalled that during the Pervez Musharraf government, PML-N workers had also been protesting almost daily, but kept in mind the “sanctity of cantonments”.
Asked who was responsible for preventing the May 9 riots, he said this question should be put to the Punjab caretaker government.
Mr Rafique also urged the former prime minister and the entire PTI leadership to accept their mistake and apologise to the whole nation over the May 9 riots. “They should do issue a public apology,” he said.
Meanwhile, Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon pointed out that half of the individuals appointed by Imran Khan to the negotiation committee were currently in hiding.
He said PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari had made it clear that before any negotiations, Mr Khan should apologise for the “injustices and wrongdoings” committed during his tenure.
Published in Dawn, May 29th, 2023
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday said negotiations can’t be held with PTI Chairman Imran Khan until “he apologises, takes corrective actions, owns the problem, and promises” the nation that anything even close to the May 9 riots will take place in the future.
In recent days, Imran has made impassioned appeals to state institutions to immediately sit with his party, talk and find a solution to put the country on the path of progress. The PTI on Saturday also constituted a seven-member “negotiation committee” without any explanation of who the committee will negotiate with for talks on elections.
Speaking on Geo’s Jirga, the PML-N leader was of the view that the May 9 riots “changed everything completely” bringing the election negotiations between the government and PTI back to square one.
“Now in this situation how will you negotiate until he (Imran) doesn’t apologise to the nation, he has only condemned the Jinnah House [torching] along with others, but he hasn’t condemned attacks on martyr monuments and military installations.”
The finance minister urged the PTI chief to go through the process of being held accountable and facing the law just like PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif went through and were proven innocent.
“You also go through this process. If you are a leader, you should at least do this,” he said. “Otherwise this is fascism.”
Dar added: “Let the law make its way. When all the evidence is there, it will be established who was behind the May 9 riots.”
Earlier, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah rebuffed PTI’s offer of talks, saying that “negotiations are held with politicians and not such people.”
The security czar was addressing a rally at Faisalabad.
“He (Imran Khan) says now to have negotiations with him. What negotiations should be held with you? You, shameless man, have not even condemned this event (May 9 riots) and never talked like politicians.”
Sanaullah questioned how will the government answer to the families of martyrs if it sits down for talks with the PTI.
“If we do this then what answer will we give to martyrs’ families? We cannot face them [then]. When inquiry happens of all this matter then the responsibility will be attached to this fitna.”
Meanwhile, Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique made it clear that there was no way possible for talks with the PTI, especially after the vandalisation of military installations.
“Imran has formed a committee,” Rafique said while talking to the media in Lahore. “Who will talk to them? No one. This is no situation to hold talks.”
The PML-N leader claimed that Imran had told his team to end the previous rounds of talks with the government, which were held on the orders of the Supreme Court last month and continued into May.
Rafique and Dar were part of the government team for talks with the PTI on elections.
He told the reporters to also question the politicians that were representing the PTI in talks about the matter.
Rafique urged Imran and the entire PTI leadership to accept their mistake and apologise to the whole nation over the May 9 riots.
“They should release a public apology,” the PML-N minister said, emphasising that what PTI did did not fall under the garb of politics.
Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon also shared the views of the federal ministers and said that negotiations with the PTI were only possible once Imran “personally apologises” to the nation, families of the martyrs, and everyone who suffered during the May 9 events.
“You tried to become an underworld don, a mafia in the country and harmed the people and institutions. And now you are saying you are ready for negotiations.
“This means whatever happened holds no value for you,” Memon said during a press conference in Karachi. “Will Imran Khan answer the nation today? Imran Khan doesn’t care about his party workers.”
Soon after the PTI chief notified Omar Ayub Khan as the party’s new secretary-general on Saturday — replacing Asad Umar — the new secretary, constituted a seven-member committee for talks, on the party chief’s instructions. The team will consist of Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Pervez Khattak, Asad Qaiser, Haleem Adil Sheikh, Aon Abbas Buppi, Murad Saeed and Hammad Azhar.
But a number of PTI leaders Dawn spoke to expressed their surprise over the formation of this committee, and some pointed out that many of the leaders named as part of the negotiation committee were either in jail or in hiding to avoid arrest.
PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif on Sunday rued that “some people” had tried to “pull his legs” during his three government tenures when he aimed to ensure that Pakistan remained ahead in development and prosperity.
Addressing a PML-N rally in Lahore to commemorate the silver jubilee of Youm-i-Takbeer, the date of Pakistan’s nuclear tests, Nawaz said that going ahead with the tests despite all international pressures and offers was the “real absolutely not”.
“We do not carry aggressive designs against anyone but cannot permit anyone to look at us with a dirty eye. It has always been my wish for which I made efforts … that Pakistan remains ahead in development and prosperity as well … but what can I do unfortunately I have to say, that some people began pulling my legs.
“This happened in 1993, again in 1999 and you saw it happened in 2017 as well. Who knows what fear these people have of me that they want to ruin a smiling and thriving country,” the former premier said.
He contrasted the high difference in current economic indicators and prices with 2017, saying that he had always strived to serve the nation but “I am still sad that all three times I was deprived of advancing this sacred mission due to some excuse.”
Mentioning his government’s economic performance and achievements, he said they should not be forgotten but compared to those who had “arrived and only destroyed Pakistan”.
Expressing good wishes for the country, Nawaz said he had said much the same before and the country was going forward in a positive direction but “it is unfortunate that those derailing [us] from that track are still present in this society.”
Nawaz said those who had “thrust Pakistan into the fires of hate, misguided the nation, sacrificed the youth for their impure aims and pushed the country back many years” were unveiled.
“God did not give us this country for a dark day like May 9 but a bright day like May 28 or for burning but for development and prosperity.”
His daughter PML-N Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz also addressed the rally and paid tribute to the politicians, scientists, engineers and defence personnel who had played crucial roles in the country’s nuclear programme.
She also condemned the protests and riots of May 9 following the arrest of PTI Chairman Imran Khan.
In separate messages on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Youm-i-Takbeer, President Dr Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb felicitated the nation.
The president termed the achievement of nuclear capability a remarkable feat for which the country’s scientists, engineers, and political and military leadership of the time deserved high commendation.
He said that on this day 25 years ago, in response to India’s nuclear tests, Pakistan conducted nuclear tests that were essential for maintaining the balance of power in the region.
“We must highly appreciate our political and military leadership that took the wise decision at that time to achieve nuclear capability making defence of the country unassailable,” the president said.
Alvi added that the whole nation paid tribute to the contributions of their eminent engineers and scientists who made Pakistan a nuclear power within a short period of time.
“For this, our whole nation was indebted to all those who played their part in making Pakistan the first Islamic nuclear power,” he added.
PM Shehbaz said Youm-i-Takbeer was not just a day but a story of the nation’s challenging and remarkable journey toward establishing credible minimum deterrence.
“The day represents how the consensus between all elements of national power achieved what once looked like an uphill task,” he said.
The prime minister paid tribute to Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, terming him a visionary who initiated the nuclear programme.
“In a show of bold leadership, my leader Mian Nawaz Sharif firmly rejected the policy of stick and carrot and made sure that the country became nuclear.”
PM Shehbaz said, “Our armed forces remained a guardian and protector of the programme in the face of the malign intentions of our enemies.
“On this day, Pakistan set a redline for its defence and laid down rules of the game for peace and stability in the region,” he added. “On the silver jubilee of Youm-i-Takbeer, I pay rich tributes to the political and military leadership, scientists, engineers and all those who remained associated with our nuclear programme.”
The premier concluded that “hard work, commitment, and determination” made it possible for our people to guard their independence against any physical threat.
FM Bilawal said he saluted scientists for their untiring commitment and contribution to Pakistan’s security and development.
“Quaid-e-Awam Bhutto laid the foundations of Pakistan’s nuclear programme and our scientists made his vision a reality, not only ensuring our regional security but also contributing to development.”
The defence minister hailed Nawaz for making the country’s defence invincible by detonating nuclear weapons.
“Our defence has become very strong due to achieving nuclear deterrence”, he said while addressing the ninth convocation of a private college in Sialkot as the chief guest.
He said that PM Zulfikar initiated the plan to make the country a nuclear power, but it was completed by the PML-N and the army also played a “very important role” in the nuclear assets of the country.
“Our Pakistan Army today is also protecting its borders as well as its nuclear assets for which we pay tribute to them.”
He said that “we should value our martyrs and ghazis because nations that forget their martyrs and desecrate their monuments cannot flourish.”
Meanwhile, Aurangzeb said Youm-i-Takbeer was the “declaration that Pakistan’s defence is invincible.”
“This day is the day of no compromise on the patriotism, bravery, insight, and national interest by PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif,” she maintained.
The minister saluted the entire team, including the scientists, who sacrificed for the country and made the defence invincible for future generations 25 years ago.
She asked the masses to celebrate the day’s national victory and national unity with pride this evening at Lahore’s Liberty Chowk Lahore by ensuring their participation at a rally to mark the occasion.
The armed forces of the country also paid rich tribute to “the brilliant minds who conceived and achieved this accomplishment under daunting challenges”, the army’s media wing said.
In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said: “Today, the complete Pakistani nation celebrates the silver jubilee of Youm-i-Takbeer and commemorates the remarkable achievement of establishing Credible Minimum Deterrence”.
The statement said that the achievement “reshaped the power dynamics in our region”.
“We salute the scientists and engineers who turned the impossible into a reality. Long live Pakistan,” the ISPR concluded.
The dates and venues for this year’s ODI World Cup in India will be revealed around the Test championship final, a top official said on Saturday.
It remains unusual that a schedule has not been announced for the 50-over showpiece event expected to be held in October-November.
How to accommodate Pakistan remains the main cause of delay.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is looking to work out a plan to play arch-rivals and Asia Cup hosts Pakistan at a neutral venue in September.
Pakistan has threatened to boycott the World Cup in India if the cricketing powerhouse refuse to play the Asia Cup.
India and Australia will face-off for Test cricket’s ultimate prize in the final between June 7-11 at the Oval, which is likely to be the venue of the World Cup announcement.
“The venues for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 will be decided at a press conference during the ICC World Test Championship Final,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah said in a statement after a meeting on the eve of the Indian Premier League final in Ahmedabad.
“The complete schedule for the tournament will also be revealed,” he said adding that they were looking at all the major cities as venues for the tournament, including Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata.
The fate of the Asia Cup is expected to be decided on the sidelines of the IPL final between Chennai Super Kings and holders Gujarat Titans.
Shah, who is also president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), has invited the cricket board presidents of Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Sri Lanka to the IPL final where they will discuss the tournament details.
“The future of the Asia Cup 2023 will be decided once we have a meeting with the ACC members (Test-playing nations) and the Associate nations,” said Shah.
Cricketing giants and arch-rivals India and Pakistan have not met on home soil in any version of the game since 2012, and only play each other in multinational tournaments on neutral grounds.
A citizen has been killed and a policeman injured during an exchange of fire with “miscreants” in the Banjot area of Swat, police said on Tuesday.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Amjad Ali from City police station — under whose jurisdiction Banjot falls — confirmed the development to Dawn.com, saying local residents had earlier intimated police at Manglor police station that seven “suspicious” people were seen going towards the hilly area of Banjot.
“Soon after, police personnel were sent to the site and an exchange of fire has been taking place since then,” he said, adding that “miscreants were holed up inside a cave in one of the mountains”.
The DSP said police had surrounded the cave.
Dawn.com correspondent in Swat said at around 11pm — when the last update for this report was filed — that firing continued in the area at intervals and the operation was under way until then.
Separately, Saidu Sharif Teaching Hospital Deputy Medical Superintendent told Dawn.com that an emergency had been imposed at the facility following the incident.
KARACHI: Within moments of the violent protests that broke out across the country on May 9, hours after PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), videos of people vandalising public and private properties, torching buildings, and clashing with police began circulating on social media.
Alarmed, the authorities quickly pulled the plug on mobile internet and blocked public access to Twitter, YouTube and Facebook. The rationale was to not allow the protesters — and in some cases, genuine miscreants — to continue mobilising using the reach of social media.
The government, clearly wary of PTI’s social media prowess, seems to have been satisfied with blocking the three platforms, likely believing the move would be enough to blunt its main rival’s most potent tool.
The PTI is, after all, a juggernaut on the three aforementioned platforms, with an aggregate following of over 17.6 million. However, the government left a flank unguarded: TikTok. They either did not take the platform seriously, or were totally clueless about its potential in narrative warfare.
TikTok is uncharted territory in the social media landscape of Pakistani politics. Only two parties — the PTI and PML-N — have official TikTok accounts. Between the two, the PTI is far ahead in the game. The traction it enjoys is overwhelming.
Its official TikTok account has three million followers and has accumulated over 167.4m likes on its video content. Meanwhile, the PML-N’s follower count stands at a measly 41,300, with just over 770,000 likes on its content.
With Twitter inaccessible, the PTI and its social media team checked the government’s move by leveraging TikTok. It went full throttle on the platform. In four days — from May 9, when Mr Khan was arrested, to May 12, when the Supreme Court ordered his release — 164 videos were posted on PTI’s official account; an average of 41 videos per day.
These videos were viewed by over 100 million people, garnered over 62 million likes and 191,000 comments. They were shared by around 260,000 people. The average engagement on each video was: over 618,000 views, 378,000 likes, 1,165 comments and 1,583 shares.
The PTI shared messages from PTI leaders and montages of Mr Khan in action. While TV screens dedicated themselves to scenes depicting violence, the PTI posted videos showing ‘peaceful’ demonstrations.
It also effectively used the platform to mobilise workers with calls to gather at specific locations in various cities.
Radio silence
The numbers show that the PTI enjoyed an open field on TikTok. The only other political account — the PML-N’s — posted only two videos in the same period, which were viewed for a total of around 134,000 times. Their cumulative engagement was around 9,400 likes, 348 comments and 908 shares.
Videos with the hashtag #fitnaarrested — including those posted by the PML-N official account and its followers — got only about 2.7m views. Meanwhile, videos with the hashtag #ReleaseImranKhan, used by PTI and its followers, got a total of over 233.6m views.
The efficacy of the government’s move to shut down three major social media platforms was debatable, as most people easily bypassed the gag by using a VPN.
As for the objective behind the move — to curb the PTI’s power to mobilise — the numbers from TikTok show that it failed to achieve it. These numbers also showed the futility of attempts to curb the spread of information during a time when there’s a vast range of social media platforms available.
Whether governments — the incumbent and subsequent — learn that lesson is yet to be seen.
PTI’s TikTok juggernaut
On the face of it, TikTok and political discourse do not seem to go hand-in-hand. ‘Fun videos’ is the phrase generally associated with the platform. However, it is a lot more than that. The place is populated by Gen Z — those born between 1997 and 2013 — who make up almost 39 per cent of its total users.
For them, TikTok has silently become a forum for serious debate on some of the most contentious issues of our times: from racial justice, climate change and politics, to gender-based violence, etc.
The ‘social side’ of Pakistani politics
The PTI is credited with being the pioneer in using social media for narrative building. The book, Pakistan’s Political Parties: Surviving between Dictatorship and Democracy, co-authored by Niloufer Siddiqui, Mariam Mufti and Sahar Shafqat, describes PTI as an “early mover” on the social media front “when it turned to Twitter and Facebook in order to mobilise the coveted youth vote.”
A 2014 research report on PTI’s use of Twitter by Saifuddin Ahmed and Marko M. Skoric found that its use of Twitter was “the most distinctive as it involved greater interaction with the public, more campaign updates and greater mobilisation of citizens to vote.”
‘Master TikTokers’
It is important to try and understand how the PTI and PML-N differ in their use of TikTok and what their content tells us about their strategy, narrative and messaging. As part of our research, we analysed the content published on both accounts. We took a sample of 144 videos from PTI’s account and 100 videos from PML-N’s account.
Since PTI publishes several videos every day, we restricted our sample to videos posted across five dates: March 8, March 14 to 16, and March 18. These dates were chosen as the account witnessed the most activity on these days.
On March 8, PTI workers came face to face with the police and a supporter, Ali Bilal, aka Zille Shah, died. From March 14 to 16, police laid a siege at the PTI chairman’s Zaman Park residence to arrest him, leading to another face-off with police. On March 18, Mr Khan arrived in Islamabad to appear before a court, resulting in a new standoff between the police and PTI workers.
On the face of it, PTI’s TikTok works like a well-oiled machine. The 144 videos were posted over a period of five days — almost 29 videos per day on average.
Given that most of them needed to be pieced together and edited for music and graphics, it appeared to be the work of a dedicated team of social media specialists. The PML-N’s 100 videos spanned over 82 days — from January 1 to March 25 — at an average of 1.2 videos per day.
The art of narrative-building
Niloufer Siddiqui explains that in the political context, a narrative is an idea of a political party’s ideology and what it stands for. ‘Narrative-building’ is a buzzword in politics these days as political parties want to take the lead in setting the discourse. For Ms Siddiqui, who teaches political science at the University of Albany, PTI is clear in what its narrative is. “It stands as anti-corruption, anti-status quo and anti-elite.”
Our analysis showed that PTI used TikTok to effectively take the lead in setting the narrative. Across the five days, the account consistently posted videos showing how authorities “targeted” the party’s workers. Of the 31 videos posted on March 8, 10 accused the police of torturing, tear gassing and killing a party worker.
Out of the 77 videos posted between March 14 and 16, a total of 18 were about the alleged torture of PTI workers, teargassing at Mr Khan’s house, police’s attempt to breach the Zaman Park’s door, and claims about the use of chemicals in water cannons and expired tear gas canisters. On March 18, the account posted 34 videos, of which 10 accused the government and security agencies of torturing and teargassing PTI workers and conducting an “illegal” search operation at Zaman Park.
The PMLN apparently failed to counter this narrative on the three dates. In fact, only two videos were posted on the party’s official account between March 10 to March 24. They both featured Maryam Nawaz Sharif.
The analysis showed that the PTI used TikTok as an effective tool to mobilise its workers and demonstrate ‘public support’ for its chairman. In 22 of the analysed videos, PTI leaders directly addressed the workers and urged them to reach Zaman Park.
These were in addition to the use of hashtag #ZamanParkPohancho** in the description of the analysed videos. Till April 7, the videos under the said hashtag — not all of them posted by the official PTI account — had over 242m views. There were also 41 videos on the apparent ‘public support’ for Mr Khan, showing the crowd gathered outside Zaman Park and during his court appearance.
For Ms Siddiqui, a big reason for the clarity in PTI’s messaging is Mr Khan being the party’s face. “The fact is that whatever Imran Khan says becomes what PTI says. So, the PTI and Imran Khan are really synonymous.”
This contrasts with the PML-N, whose narrative, like the house of Sharifs, appears to be divided between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Ms Nawaz. Of the 100 analysed videos, the narrative of 40 videos centred around PM Shehbaz. These were clips of his meeting, interviews, media talks and governance. Ms Sharif was the focus of 23 videos. Most of these videos were her addresses, rallies, and ‘public support’.
The PML-N strategy witnessed an apparent shift after January 28 — the day Ms Sharif returned to Pakistan. All but one of the 23 videos featuring Ms Sharif were posted after this date. Before the PML-N leader’s return, the party’s narrative was focused on PM Shehbaz’s governance. Out of the 40, 33 videos featuring the prime minister were posted before this date.
The ‘Imran factor’
The analysis showed that the PTI is clear in its approach: centre the entire narrative around Chairman Imran Khan — his popularity, supporters’ willingness to “sacrifice their lives for him”, his “fight for people’s rights”, and him being a “one-man army against the state’s oppression”.
Of the 144 videos analysed, the narrative in 62 centred around Mr Khan, ranging from the conspiracy to kill him, reasons for his attempted arrest, the gag on his speeches, the cases against him, etc. In 36 out of 144 videos, Mr Khan was the sole appearance. These were clips of his speeches and his messages to PTI supporters.
This ‘Imran-centric’ content did yield results for PTI. Nine of the 14 videos on PTI’s account that crossed over a million views featured Mr Khan. Not only for his party, but the PTI chairman also fetched eyeballs for the rival PML-N. Of the ten most-viewed videos on the PML-N’s account during the period in consideration, four were directly critical of Mr Khan.
‘The voter is changing’
While political campaigns run on Pakistani social media leave a lot to be desired, the presence of the two biggest political parties on TikTok indicates an effort to reach out to voters where they’re concentrated. In surveys conducted by Asfandyar Mir and Niloufer Siddiqui to understand what platforms people use to access news and determine its trustworthiness, the numbers were 58pc for Facebook, 63pc WhatsApp, 47pc YouTube, 17pc Twitter and 30pc TikTok.
This change is not limited to how people consume news; it has a wider implication for Pakistan’s political landscape. “The voter is changing,” Ms Siddiqui said while explaining this trend.
While political parties with inherently weak organisational systems have relied on electables and patronage to attract votes, things have started to change. “Social media and urbanisation, severing feudal and biradri ties are changing party affiliations.”
And the PTI has capitalised on this.
Ms Siddiqui said the PTI also relied on electables, but it simultaneously managed to capture people’s attention with its anti-status quo and anti-corruption narrative. “The PML-N and PPP, the other two major parties, failed to catch up. They are still stuck in electable maths.”
This was helped by PTI’s openness to exploring new platforms to amplify its message. As Mr Ahad explained, the party has always been more conducive to experimenting with social media, while their rivals fear the backlash their leaders might receive on these places.
“The PTI has been dominating the narrative so much, and for so long, other parties are apprehensive in countering it,” he said.
*The number of likes, shares, comments and views are approximation as TikTok rounds off the figure after it reaches five digits
**All hashtags originally in Urdu script have been rewritten in Roman Urdu.
This story has been done in collaboration with Media Matters for Democracy.
Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2023
Sporadic fighting between Sudan’s warring factions could be heard in the capital Khartoum on Sunday, residents said, after a Saudi and US-brokered deal for a week-long ceasefire raised hopes of some let-up in the five-week conflict.
The ceasefire deal, signed by the army and the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) after talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah, is due to come into effect on Monday evening with an internationally supported monitoring mechanism. It also allows for the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Repeated ceasefire announcements since the conflict started on April 15 have failed to stop the fighting, but the Jeddah deal marks the first time the sides have signed a truce agreement after negotiations.
Analysts say it is unclear whether army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan or RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, are able to enforce a ceasefire on the ground. Both have previously indicated they are seeking victory in the war, and neither of them travelled to Jeddah.
The war has seen 1.1 million people flee their homes, moving either within Sudan or to neighbouring countries, fuelling a humanitarian crisis that threatens to destabilise the region.
It has left those still in Khartoum struggling to survive amid mass looting, a collapse in health services, and dwindling supplies of food, fuel, power and water. Witnesses reported the sound of clashes in central and southern Khartoum on Sunday.
Safaa Ibrahim, a 35-year-old Khartoum resident, told Reuters by phone that she hoped the deal could bring an end to the conflict.
“We’re tired of this war. We’ve been chased away from our homes, and the family has scattered between towns in Sudan and Egypt,” she said.
“We want to return to normal life and safety. Al-Burhan and Hemedti have to respect people’s desire for life.”
The war erupted in Khartoum over plans for the generals who seized full power in a 2021 coup to sign up for a transition towards elections under a civilian government.
Burhan and Hemedti had held the top positions on Sudan’s ruling council since former leader Omar al-Bashir was overthrown during a 2019 popular uprising.
The Jeddah talks have been focused on allowing aid and restoring essential services. Mediators say further talks would be needed to seek the removal of forces from urban areas to broker a permanent peace deal with civilian involvement.
“The people of Khartoum are waiting for the truce and the opening of humanitarian corridors,” said Mohamed Hamed, an activist in the capital. “The health situation is getting worse day after day.”
Senior army general Yassir al-Atta told Sudan state TV that the army had been trying to remove the RSF from homes, schools and hospitals.
Millions of civilians have been trapped as the army has used air strikes and shelling to target the RSF forces that embedded themselves in residential areas early in the fighting.
Asked about calls from some tribal leaders for civilians to be armed, Atta said this was not currently required but residents being attacked in their homes should be able to act in self-defence. “Let them arm themselves to protect themselves, that is a natural right,” he said.
Since the conflict began, unrest has flared in other parts of Sudan, especially the western region of Darfur.
Some 705 people have been killed and at least 5,287 injured, according to the World Health Organization, though the true death toll is believed to be much higher.
The leaders of the Quad group — Australia, India, Japan and the United States — delivered a thinly veiled swipe at Beijing’s behaviour on Saturday at a summit in Hiroshima.
US President Joe Biden and his three partners in the group did not mention China by name but the communist superpower was clearly the target of language in a joint statement calling for “peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific maritime domain”.
“We strongly oppose destabilising or unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion,” the statement said, using diplomatic language that appeared to refer to China’s economic tactics to gain leverage over poorer countries and also its military expansion in the Pacific.
“We express serious concern at the militarisation of disputed features, the dangerous use of coastguard and maritime militia vessels, and efforts to disrupt other countries’ offshore resource exploitation activities,” the statement added, clearly referring to Chinese construction of bases on former offshore reefs and harassment of non-Chinese vessels in disputed waters.
The Quad leaders held their meeting while already gathered in Hiroshima for a Group of 7 summit.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had been meant to host Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Sydney next week. However, Biden pulled out, saying he had to return to Washington from Japan on Sunday to negotiate with Republican opponents on the US debt ceiling.
Biden apologised for forcing the change in plans and has invited Albanese to make a state visit to the White House.
In their statement, they stressed the Quad’s support for infrastructure improvements across the vast Asia-Pacific region, while saying, in another apparent dig at China, that they wanted to assist such investments but would “not impose unsustainable debt burdens” on recipients of assistance.
Among the projects the Quad leaders highlighted was the “urgent need to support quality undersea cable networks in the Indo-Pacific, which are key to global growth and prosperity”.
They announced a partnership aiming to draw on their countries’ expertise in the specialist maritime cable sector.
They also said that an existing pilot programme for high-tech monitoring of illegal fishing would expand.
And they said they were “deeply concerned” by repression in Myanmar, and they condemned “North Korea’s destabilising ballistic missile launches and pursuit of nuclear weapons in violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions”.
The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday set aside National Assembly (NA) Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf’s decision to accept the resignations of at least 53 PTI lawmakers and the subsequent de-notifications orders issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan.
The court order was pronounced by Justice Shahid Karim on pleas filed by 72 PTI members — notably including Fawad Chaudhry, Hammad Azhar, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Shafqat Mahmood and Riaz Fatyana — with him directing the petitioners to appear before the NA speaker for the withdrawal of their notifications.
The judge further issued directives for the speaker to hear out the relevant PTI members again and then take a decision regarding their resignations.
The ruling, a written order of which is awaited, comes more than a year after the PTI lawmakers’ en masse resignations from the NA, following the ouster of party chief Imran Khan as the premier in April last year.
Their resignations were accepted by the NA speaker in a piecemeal manner while they continued to file multiple petitions against the speaker’s decision.
Initially, the NA Speaker accepted the resignations of only 11 PTI lawmakers on July 28, 2022.
Ashraf told a PTI delegation on Dec 29, 2022, that the party’s lawmakers would be summoned individually for verification of their resignations as the latter insisted on them being accepted in one go.
But after stalling the process for eight months, the NA speaker accepted the resignations of 34 PTI MNAs on Jan 17 and 35 MNAs on Jan 20, including Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rashid, as the party hinted it would “test” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif with a confidence vote.
On Jan 24, 43 PTI MNAs had written to the NA speakers withdrawing their resignations. However, the speaker had already accepted the resignations by then. Subsequently, on Jan 25, the ECP de-notified 43 more PTI lawmakers, taking the total number to 123.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived in Saudi Arabia on Thursday, state media said, to join an Arab League summit for the first time in more than a decade of war.
The visit seals Assad’s dramatic return to the Arab fold, a development championed by host Saudi Arabia and fellow Gulf power the United Arab Emirates despite reservations from other Arab leaders.
Assad “arrived at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah to participate in… the Arab League summit” to be held Friday, Syrian state television reported.
Saudi state-affiliated channel Al-Ekhbariya showed footage of a smiling Assad disembarking from a plane and being greeted on the tarmac by Prince Badr bin Sultan, deputy governor of Makkah region, where Jeddah is located.
The Arab League suspended Damascus in November 2011 over its bloody crackdown on protests, which triggered a conflict that has gone on to kill more than 500,000 people and displace millions more.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries either severed or downgraded ties with Assad at the time — with Riyadh long openly championing his ouster.
But earlier this month, the 22-member pan-Arab body welcomed Damascus back and Saudi Arabia invited Assad to Jeddah, the latest in a series of high-profile diplomatic twists reshaping the region in recent months.
Syrian pro-government newspaper al-Watan said Assad would likely meet “a number of leaders in bilateral meetings” on Thursday evening and Friday morning.
The last Arab League summit Assad attended was in 2010 in Libya.
Regional capitals have gradually been warming to Assad as he has held onto power and clawed back lost territory with crucial support from Iran and Russia.
In 2018, the United Arab Emirates re-established ties with Syria, and it has been leading the charge to reintegrate Damascus.
It has also invited Assad to attend the UN climate summit in Dubai later this year, Syrian official news agency SANA reported on Monday.
In March 2022, Assad visited the UAE on his first official trip to an Arab country since the war began.
He has also visited Oman, Iran and Russia in recent years.
Arab outreach to Assad picked up pace after a deadly earthquake struck Syria and Turkey on February 6.
A decision in March by Saudi Arabia and Iran to resume ties has also shifted the Middle Eastern political landscape.
Riyadh, which cut ties with Assad’s government in 2012, confirmed last week that work would resume at the two countries’ respective diplomatic missions.
Not every country in the region has been eager to mend ties with Assad.
Qatar said this month it would not normalise relations with Assad’s government but also noted this would not be “an obstacle” to Arab League reintegration.
On Thursday, the emir of Qatar, a fierce critic of the Syrian leader, announced he would lead the Gulf state’s delegation.
While the Qatari government has called for accountability for “war crimes” in Syria, the emir made no comment on Qatar’s expectations for the summit.
Syria’s front lines have mostly quietened, but large parts of the north remain outside government control, and no political solution to the conflict is in sight.
Officials at several recent meetings have said Arab leadership is needed to find a settlement.
The fate of millions of Syrian refugees — many of them living in neighbouring Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon — is among some states’ main concerns.
Several Arab countries are also seeking increased security cooperation with Syria, which critics say has turned into a narco-state with a $10 billion captagon industry, mostly trafficked to the Gulf.
Assad is hoping full normalisation of ties with wealthy Gulf monarchies and other Arab states will help finance reconstruction.
Following a preparatory meeting in Jeddah on Wednesday, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said “reconstruction will facilitate (refugee) returns, and we welcome any Arab role in this field”.
The United States has said it does “not believe that Syria merits readmission to the Arab League”.
“We are not going to normalise relations with the Assad regime and we certainly don’t support others doing that as well,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters in Washington on Wednesday.
Scores of people poured into the streets of the Charbagh tehsil in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swat on Wednesday to protest against yesterday’s firing at a school van, which killed a student and injured seven others.
On Tuesday, a policeman posted outside the Sangota Public School allegedly suddenly opened fire at a school van. The suspect, identified as Alam Khan, was immediately arrested after the incident and a first information report was registered against him.
According to the Swat Police Public Relations Officer Moin Fayyaz, the suspect was presented before a court today, where he confessed to the crime. The cop was subsequently sent to jail.
However, residents of Charbagh — during a demonstration staged at the Charbagh bazaar and organised by the Matorzee Qami Jirga Charbagh — sought an immediate inquiry against the “black sheep” in the police.
The protesters, while chanting anti-police slogans, condemned the “obnoxious act” of the police personnel and demanded that “extremist elements” within the police should be identified.
Civil society members Naveed Iqbal, Sawb Khan, Hilal Danish, Aftab Ahmad, Adalat Khan, Javed Ali and Advocate Haider Ali were among the prominent speakers during the protest.
The protesters said that the incident of firing a school van by a police cop was shocking news. “We can’t believe that the security personnel, on duty to protect the school children, opened firing on them,” said Naveed, one of the protesters.
“The higher authorities must clean the police force from negative elements by conducting a thorough survey so that no such incident occurs in the future,” said Hilal, another protester.
The residents further warned that if police officials did not take notice of their demands, district-wide protests would be held.
Swat District Bar Association also condemned the tragic incident and demanded the transfer of the district police officer. The lawyers approved the formation of an action committee to closely monitor peace-related issues in Swat.
On the other hand, Regional Police Officer Nasir Mahmood Satti, issued a letter to all the district police officers in the Malakand division, directing them to immediately conduct a thorough mental fitness assessment of all the police officials.
“Those who were found behaving incongruously or having personality issues, acutely depressed or biased to gender or creed must be pointed out, referred to medical boards and their services must be terminated as they pose serious potential threats to public safety,” the notice stated.
It added such officers must not be appointed on important duties till they are declared fit by medical boards.
The notice further stated that in case of non-compliance and if any such incident took place again, departmental action would be taken against respective SDPOs, SHOs, DSP HQs, RI, Line officers, and Muharars.
A woman won a local election in India almost two weeks after her death as supporters kept their pledge to back her in a sign of respect, officials said.
Ashiya Bi polled at nearly 44 per cent in the race for a municipal civic body seat in India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh this month and was declared victorious posthumously.
The popular 30-year-old first-time candidate fell ill, reportedly from an acute lung and abdominal infection, and died just 12 days before the poll.
Her husband informed election officials, but district officer Bhagwan Sharan told AFP on Tuesday that there was no procedure in place to remove her name from the ballot.
“Once the electoral process begins, it cannot be halted or paused,” Sharan said.
Before she passed away, Bi proved a major hit with voters, and many decided to cast their ballots for her anyway in a sign of respect and admiration.
“Ashiya made friends easily and people didn’t want to break the promise of support they gave her and hence the result,” local resident Mohammad Zakir told the Times of India.
Her husband Muntazim Qureishi said Bi had “won hearts with her calm demeanour”.
“Our votes are a tribute to her,” the paper quoted another voter, Arif, as saying.
Personal, familial and community loyalties often play a decisive role in India’s at-times colourful and chaotic elections.
The National Assembly (NA) adopted on Monday a motion calling for the constitution of a five-member committee that would prepare and forward references against Supreme Court (SC) judges to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) — a body empowered to hear cases of misconduct against judges — on “the ground of misconduct”.
The motion, moved by PPP lawmaker Shazia Sobia, has been adopted by the House as apex court judges — notably Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial — face criticism by members of the Pakistan Democratic Movement-led ruling coalition over some of their recent judgements amid a worsening political turmoil.
The judgements at the centre of this conflict primarily pertain to the timing of elections in Punjab, legislation on clipping the chief justice’s powers and, most recently, the “relief” granted to PTI chief Imran Khan in multiple cases after he was whisked away by the paramilitary Rangers from the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) premises in a graft case.
The motion seeking a committee for filing references against SC judges seems to be the latest move by the ruling coalition to assert its authority in the ongoing conflict while the PDM stages a sit-in outside the SC in Islamabad.
It was moved under Rule 244 (b) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly, which states: “The assembly may, by motion appoint a special committee which, shall have composition and functions as may be specified in the motion.”
The draft of the motion, seen by Dawn.com, demanded that a special committee shall be formed “to prepare and forward a reference or references under Article 209 of the Constitution (which elaborates on the constitution and functions of the SJC) to the Supreme Judicial Council on the ground of misconduct as discussed in the National Assembly and on such other grounds which are available against any judge or judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, as the committee decides”.
The references shall be filed at the earliest, it added.
The motion nominated PML-N’s Mohsin Nawaz Ranjha, PPP’s Khursheed Ahmed Junejo, Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal’s Salahuddin Ayubi, Balochistan’s National Party’s Shahnaz Baloch and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s Salahuddin as members of the committee.
The “speaker may be authorised to make such changes in the composition of the committee as he may deem fit”, it said.
Earlier, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif also called for the formation of a committee comprising parliamentarians, tasked with analysing the conduct of the chief justice, filing a reference under Article 209 of the Constitution for “misconduct”, and presenting evidence “to set an example” that the integrity of Pakistan remains inviolable.
Addressing the NA, Asif emphasised the need for the Parliament to assert its authority and uphold its supremacy.
He also criticised the CJP’s comments where he allegedly welcomed Imran during his appearance before the apex court following his arrest.
The NA also passed today a resolution condemning the “recent incidents of vandalism and the burning of infrastructure” in Pakistan, following the arrest of PTI Chairman Imran Khan.
The resolution, seen by Dawn.com, was presented by dissident PTI lawmaker Wajiha Qamar.
It stated that the House expressed “grave concern and outrage over the negative impact of vandalism and burning of infrastructure on the socioeconomic development, public welfare and stability of the country”.
The House also regretted the loss of lives, injuries and damage to the state and private property resulting from these acts, it added.
It further stated that the House reaffirmed “the rule of law and protection of human rights, and fundamental freedoms, including the right to peaceful assembly and expression, as enshrined in the Constitution of Pakistan”.
“This House condemns unequivocally the acts of vandalism, destruction and burning of infrastructure that have taken place across Pakistan following the arrest o the NAB(National Accountability Bureau)-accused Imran Khan Niazi,” the resolution read.
It added, “This House also condemns strongly the violent attacks on the GHQ (General Headquarters), memorials of martyrs, historic buildings, mosques and schools which were set on fire and damaged.
“Recognising and appreciating the vital role played by the armed forces and security agencies, including the Rangers and police, in upholding the sovereignty, safeguarding public order, and ensuring the safety and security of the people, this House extends its unwavering solidarity and support [to them].”
Moreover, the resolution said, “Recognising the importance of bringing criminals to justice and upholding the rule of law, this House calls for the swift and impartial investigation of these incidents while urging the government to take severe action against the perpetrators, regardless of their affiliations or political backgrounds, with due process.”
With regards to the judiciary, it said: “This House recognises the constitutional imperative of an independent and impartial judiciary in upholding the rule of law, ensuring justice, and safeguarding the democratic principles of a nation. It is essential that the judiciary functions without bias or favouritism, maintaining the trust and confidence of the people.
“This House expresses concern over overt bias in decisions by the Supreme Court that undermines its credibility and impartiality, particularly if it favours one political party over others. By turning it in the mind of the public into just another political institution, the court undermines its legitimacy and the credibility of its judgements.
“The House also strongly condemns actions that compromise the fair administration of justice and calls for transparency, accountability, and adherence to the principles of justice, impartiality and unfairness by the Supreme Court to restore public trust in the judicial system.”
In a joint session of the Parliament later in the day, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also took exception to the alleged gesture, saying: “Instead of saying ‘nice to see you’, the court should have condemned militant organisations. Should have condemned terrorism. And should have given the opportunity to Khan sahib to decide whether you are a terrorist organisation or a political party.”
Bilawal made these remarks in the context of vandalism and violence witnessed in protests that followed Imran’s arrest at the IHC — for which the government has held Imran responsible while the latter has distanced himself from the riots and called for an independent probe into it under the CJP’s supervision.
The foreign minister said if the PTI refused to publicly dissociate itself from the events that followed Imran’s arrest, did not condemn them and did not seek an apology for them, it meant that it no longer remained a political party.
“This means that it has become a terrorist organisation and if it is so, then this House and that institution (court) will have to treat it as a militant organisation.”
