Creeping military rule?

THE battle lines had long been drawn. Now the fight has reached a critical stage. The May 9 attacks on military installations in some cities seem to be a turning point. Enraged PTI supporters directly took on the security establishment. Former prime minister Imran Khan has lashed out at the army chief, thus crossing the Rubicon.

Now the empire has struck back. Thousands of PTI leaders and supporters have been arrested in a countrywide crackdown. Some of them could face trial under the Army Act. The creeping shadow of army rule is becoming more pronounced.

However, the battle between Imran Khan and the security establishment is only one part of the game of thrones. The other part features the ruling coalition which is up in arms against the top judiciary and is vowing to remove the chief justice, who they allege is favouring the former prime minister. The court's order to release Khan within a day of his arrest and provide him with protection from further action has intensified the conflict. Parliament has passed a resolution calling to file a reference against the top judge.

The ruling coalition has also decided to demonstrate its street power. Thousands of opposition supporters this week gathered outside the Supreme Court demanding that the chief justice step down. The protesters may have dispersed peacefully, with no act of violence reported, but it has brought the battle between the government and the top judiciary to a head.

A trial under the Army Act does not fulfil the requirement of fairness.

Both aspects of the picture - an opposition pitted against the security establishment and a government at loggerheads with the apex court - gives a dangerous twist to the power game. It's a free-for-all and a volatile situation. The endgame is unpredictable.

Curiously, the decision to try the perpetrators of the May 9 attacks on military installations was taken in an extraordinary corps commanders meeting and not by the civilian government. The cabinet is most likely to rubber-stamp the decision. But it will be hard for the Supreme Court to validate the move to try civilians under the Army Act and the Official Secrets Act - something that would legitimise the military's growing sway. The proposed establishment of military courts and deployment of the army in major cities would further lengthen the institution's shadow, which already eclipses a tottering civilian government.

The use of the Army Act against political activists will have serious...