Maulana's pragmatism.

Byline: Muhammad Amir Rana

THE so-called Azadi March is finally under way in Islamabad. Led by JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the protest march has already stirred the political landscape of the country. It is the third major agitation in the capital after the PTI and Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan sieges. The latter two achieved little but still aggravated the chronic political instability in the country.

While a debate on the actors and influencers of the earlier agitation movements has eluded our political discourse, a new movement has emerged, which some consider to be a sequel of previous adventures - but with new faces. However, Maulana Fazlur Rehman has succeeded to a great extent in corroborating the impression that this is his own, independent movement.

No one can one deny the need and importance of political stability, especially when the country is facing a major economic challenge. But political stability cannot be manufactured artificially. Silencing the opposition or critical voices may delay the chaos, but eventually creates a void that extra-constitutional forces want to fill. A desire to eliminate political forces thus will not work in the long run.

Despite all the efforts made by the establishment to 'manufacture' stability and give the impression of a harmonious civil-military relationship, the performance of the PTI government remains unimpressive. Good governance could have averted the prevalent political uncertainty. Instead, the present governance record has fuelled public anger. The maulana's Azadi March has created space for the voices of dissent, and has even got unprecedented support from liberal segments of society.

An aspect of the Azadi March is the growing anti-establishment sentiment in the new madressah generation.

Apart from the theories about the real motives of the march, and the probable support of sections of the establishment, the maulana has capitalised on some relevant factors which are the outcome of recent political developments. The first factor is the divided and under-pressure opposition, the second is the weak performance of the government, and the third constitutes the growing anti-establishment sentiments in the new madressah generation.

Maulana Fazlur Rehman is considered to be the most pragmatic political leader in the country, and like any other leader has the ability to maximise advantages for his party in unfavourable environments. Though he and Prime Minister Imran Khan have a history...