New Delhi: A constitutional crisis of any magnitude is always a cause of concern for a country affected by the same, irrespective of the reason that might have led to it. Pakistan is certainly no exception. The dissolution of its parliament by Pakistan President Arif Alvi at the behest of the now de-notified Pak premier Imran Khan has not only taken the opposition by surprise, making them move to the Pakistan Supreme Court and raising the demand for trying Imran Khan under article 6 for ‘high-treason’ but has also left the entire nation baffled.
The development has become food for comedy on the social media as Pakistani statesmen talk about the debacle. Meanwhile, its former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s claims of the involvement of a ‘foreign hand’ in the no-confidence motion against his government have exposed the frailties in the constitutional structure and sovereignty of Pakistan, which has set its eyes on its Supreme Court for an effective and thoroughly constitutional resolution of the crisis.
Since the fiasco, several judges of Pakistan’s supreme court have met Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial to express their concern over the situation, while senior lawyers have sought the constitution of a larger bench to rule out any kind of favoritism in the hearing of the case. But only time will tell how aptly the country manages to handle and emerge out of this disaster.
Khan, a seasoned cricketer, Khan, who played 48 Test matches, 14 of which were won and eight lost by his team, with 26 ties and 139 ODIs, (77 won, 57 lost and one tie), as the Captain of Pakistan’s cricket team, had also been charged with tampering the cricket ball during his cricketing days. That coupled with this gruesome development have further raised questions about his integrity as a leader.
Meanwhile, Imran Khan continues to receive his own share of bouquets and brickbats. Though several among Pakistan’s seasoned politicians and former cricketers have congratulated him for the move, former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has sought a trial against Khan and ‘others involved in the ‘conspiracy’ on charges of high treason’.
While it is believed that approaching the public in all sincerity and getting through the elections would have helped him stand in good stead, Imran Khan chose to act shrewdly.
Despite his vow to ‘play till the last ball’, Khan has been charged with bending the rules of the country’s political game in violation of the spirit of sportsmanship and the law of the land. The public also feels that he could still have won had he played till the end like a true sportsman.
