Situationer: The fault in our political stars.

They say politicians don't care about the people, and the events of the past couple of weeks have done little to dispel this impression.

The lengths they will go to in order to protect their narrow political interests, pro-democracy and pro-people rhetoric notwithstanding, seem to have pushed the country to a breaking point.

As the economy sinks deeper and deeper into quagmire, the ruling alliance - led by the PML-N - and the opposition PTI have taken their fight to the streets, at the expense of their inflation-stricken citizens, governance and, last but not least, democracy.

No wonder then, that neither the IMF nor the so-called 'friendly countries' appear very interested in helping Pakistan back from the brink of an imminent default.

Partisan caretakers, cold shoulder from 'friendly countries' and constitutional sleight of hand have placed Pakistan in the eye of a perfect storm

In such a climate, hearing about growing 'divisions' within the military and the judiciary along political lines does not come as much of a surprise - it is after all merely a reflection of the polarisation that has already taken place in the social fabric at large.

Nor is it surprising to see parliament and the executive becoming totally dysfunctional as the country goes under.

With Imran Khan demanding immediate elections and the ruling alliance hell bent on delaying them, the political temperature is soaring to boiling point.

The most important question now seems to be: do those on either side of the political fence - involved in this power struggle - have what it takes to save the state of Pakistan?

'Both those in power and those in the opposition are to blame for what we are seeing today. But those in government have a greater responsibility to cool down political temperatures,' says a journalist and political analyst, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Sadly, he notes, the ruling coalition is 'indulging in revenge politics, unleashing police action and arresting its opponents - all in the name of executing court orders'.

'The polarisation has reached a level where even the caretaker setup in Punjab, whose job is to make arrangements for fair polls in the province, has lost its neutrality and is now looking like an extension of the PML-N or the federal government,' he notes.

This does not augur well for the federal government or the upcoming elections. 'Who will agree to elections under the present caretakers in Punjab? The interim government must distance...

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