On October 31 2022, three days before the attack, Imran Khan makes a statement. After that, Imran was shot in the leg and was admitted to the hospital. The former Pakistan Prime Minister said, "For six months I have been seeing that a revolution is taking birth in the country. The only question is whether it will happen easily through the ballot box or will it be disastrous through BLOODSHED?" Khan blamed three people for this after two gunmen opened fire on him on Thursday (November 3). On behalf of Imran, the leaders of his party, PTI Asad Umar and Milan Asmal Iqbal issued a statement saying that Imran believes that this attack was done because of three people. These people are Shahbaz Sharif (Prime Minister), Rana Sanaullah (Interior Minister) and Major General Faisal (ISI). Imran has been the target of criticism from both Shahbaz Sharif and the army since he started the Protest March from Lahore to Islamabad.
Demands of Imran
Imran is adamant about his two main demands. First, elections should be held at the beginning of next year and the new government should be given the right to the head of the government to decide the new chief of the army. Actually, Imran is sure that he will become the head of the new government in Pakistan, that is, the Prime Minister. The tenure of the current Army Chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, ends on November 29 this year. Imran wanted his close friend and Bahawalpur Corps Commander Lt. Gen Faiz Hameed to be the next army chief. But the problem for Imran is that Hameed is retiring on April 30 next year. So he had to resort to mass mobilization of the people to show their strength in their attempts to cripple and topple the government. The game of overthrowing uncomfortable politicians from power through a show of power is not new in Pakistan's politics. The military has done this many times in the past.
Conflict with the Army
The Pakistani army played an important role in making Imran Khan the Prime Minister of Pakistan in 2018. But after a few days, the gap between Imran and the army widened. When Imran had to step down in April 2022, it was believed that the army was also standing against Imran. After losing power, Imran has openly stood against the army. The army is angry with Imran for publicly targeting Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa. Imran called Bajwa a traitor and even Mir Jafar and Mir Sadiq. Mir Jafar and Mir Sadiq are known in Indian history for deceiving their masters. While Mir Jafar betrayed Siraj-ud-Daulah and supported the British, Mir Sadiq did the same thing to Tipu Sultan.
Conflict with ISI Chief
The Pakistan Army has come out on its own to respond to the constant criticism against the army from social media accounts linked to Imran Khan and his party PTI, which usually avoids comments on such matters. On 27 October, the army criticized Imran in a press conference. Pakistani intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum accused Imran of making unconstitutional demands and said that Imran wants the army to sack the Shahbaz government and declare elections ahead of time. ISI made it clear that it had decided to wrap up the 'Imran project'. Expressing displeasure over the question related to Imran Khan's secret talks with the top leadership of the army, General Nadeem Anjum said that, on one hand, Imran wants the army to help him get power and, on the other hand, he is publicly targeting General Bajwa. However, it is believed that despite the displeasure of the Pakistani army with Imran, there is still a section in the army which is supporting Imran.
Haqiqi Azadi March From Lahore
On October 28, Imran started a massive march from Lahore, the capital of Pakistan's largest province, Punjab, towards the country's capital, Islamabad. The aim of this march is to overthrow the Shahbaz Sharif government and hold fresh elections soon. The name of this march is Haqiqi Azadi March and through this Imran Khan is promising to get the Pakistanis 'Real Freedom'. The rally was supposed to reach Islamabad on November 4, but due to the slow progress, it is believed that it will now reach Islamabad on November 10.
Displeasure over Imran's rally
ISI DG Nadeem Anjum issued a warning to Imran and his supporters about their long march, saying that the army would help the Shahbaz government to maintain law and order. The special thing is that the army had given a warning to Imran a day before his huge march which started on 28 October. Earlier, secret talks between the Shahbaz government and the army did not lead to any solution and Imran could not be stopped from holding the rally. Experts believe that the army is worried about Imran's criticism because he has been successful in convincing the general public that the army has control over the internal and external policies of the country.
Popularity of Imran
Imran is very popular among the youth, so in recent times his appeal against the army has shown the most impact on the youth. The youth, who are active on social media, are fiercely sharing messages against the army. The youths are raising slogans against the army. Political experts believe that even though Imran had failed to deal with the economic crisis while in office, it added to his popularity when he spoke of a US conspiracy behind his loss of power in April this year. Due to the deteriorating economy of Pakistan, rising inflation and unemployment, the people have turned against the current government and supported Imran.
By-Election Win
The proof of Imran's growing popularity is also the by-elections held in October, in which Imran's PTI won 6 of the 8 National Assembly seats. These results are being considered a setback for the coalition government of the ruling Muslim League, Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party. Earlier in July, Imran's PTI returned to power in the province, winning 15 out of 20 seats in Punjab. Punjab is considered to be the most important province of Pakistan both in terms of population and political clout.
Imran Khan is very popular in Pakistan, especially among the youth. Instead of a political figure, his image is that of a legendary cricketer who led Pakistan to their only World Cup win in 1992. At the same time, Imran has a very clean image, which is in stark contrast to the Bhutto-Zardari and Sharif families of the PPP, who are facing many allegations of corruption. Also, the Pathan or Pashtun community that Imran comes from is the second largest community in Pakistan with 18% of the population. The population of Pathans in Pakistan is more than 35 million.
