The art of the possible.

The Constitution and the laws promulgated by the parliament define the contours of the system of governance and the powers and the role of the state institutions in promoting the interests of the state. Their sanctity is beyond reproach. States progress regarding the achievement of their national goals when all the state institutions and the stakeholders in the system of governance strictly adhere to the constitution and the laws of the land. Any deviation from them creates chaos and anarchy jeopardising the state interest and consequently adding to the sufferings of the masses. Unfortunately, our history provides a testimony of wilful defiance of the constitution and laws by the ruling elite to promote their vested interests or the struggle to clinch power by all means fair or unfair. Consequently, the country finds itself at a crossroads. It has endured several self-inflicted tragedies including the dismemberment of the country since independence. Although military dictators are also responsible for the detours that the country took from the objectives of independence and the vision bequeathed by the founding father regarding the path the country had to traverse but in my view, the politicians who enjoyed power stints in between the military rules share the major blame for it. They never made any sincere effort to do away with the archaic colonial system of governance which has in-built avenues of corruption and promotes power politics sans law and morality. Regrettably, they are still refusing to learn from history and taking corrective measures to put the country back on the rails.

The current political crisis in the country is surely a sequel to the same mindset of grabbing political power by hook or crook at the cost of national interests where the good of the masses finds no place. The onus for fomenting this crisis lies on Imran Khan. No person in his mind can deny the reality that he is a leader in his own right enjoying considerable following in the country. But the narrative he is trying to propagate is based on falsehood. His narrative of the US conspiracy to remove him from power in connivance with PDM leaders and establishment has been nullified by none other than the man himself by telling the financial times that he no more blames the US for the conspiracy. He adopted a similar approach regarding his allegations of 35 punctures but when the judicial commission dismissed his contention about rigging, he told a private TV...