Khan's incarceration and Pakistan's doomed politics

It has been a well-rehearsed trope in Pakistan polity to haunt erstwhile leaders who are currently not anywhere near the realm of power. It is certainly not the loss of power, but the rising antipathy with the military that results in many such procedures. Nothing different happened in the case of Imran Ahmad Khan Niazi, the former prime minister of Pakistan.

Imran Khan was sentenced to three years in prison in the Toshakhana corruption case. After the verdict, Imran Khan was arrested from Zaman Park. Khan has been disqualified from contesting elections for five years. A fine of Rs.1 lakh was also imposed. Imran Khan did not come to the court for the hearing. The Islamabad trial court passed the sentence.

The sentence is related to the illegal selling of the gifts received during his tenure as prime minister of Pakistan. The law requires that the gifts received during the prime ministership be handed over to the Toshakhana department of the government.

Like this, there are more than 100 cases impending in court against Khan. Presaging Pakistan politics, Khan is in danger of serving his erstwhile years in jail if turned guilty in all the raised cases. Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has also stooped into redundancy with the arrest. There is no big leader who can outshine Khan in Pakistan politics and the void is raising serious questions within his party. Former Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi is talked of as a possible replacement, but considering the meagre people support that Qureshi has, the chances are zilch.

The haunting of Imran Khan was a result of his palpable dissonance with Pakistan’s powerful army leader Asim Munir. As long as Munir’s tenure continues at the top of the army, Khan won’t see light from the darkened dungeons of Attock jail in Punjab province. Courts and other systems of government will continue to be pawns of the army as usual and it is unpredictable about how long Munir will continue to remain in the crescendo of power.

Nawaz Sharif, who is waiting for the next prime ministerial term is also a catalyst for Khan’s incarceration. There are many corruption cases against Nawaz Sharif, the leader of the Muslim League (Nawaz) party. It means that Nawaz can remain a puppet even if he becomes the Prime Minister. Pak Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and his acolytes in power are paving the way for Nawaz to take back the reins of power. Even if Nawas remains idle under the army’s proxy rule, the opportunity will arise for the leader to cash crores through other sprawling corruptions going unhindered in Pakistan’s clogged-up politics.

Pakistan's corruption has left people's life in penury with the leaders caring least bit about this predicament. Prices of all things are skyrocketing. The usual contrarian voices of PM Modi’s governance in India will have to eat their words if considering the case of Pakistan.

No one can predict how long this country can continue under the influence of corruption and the threat of the army. Pakistan's continued insecurity will ring alarm bells in India as the threat looms large about border security.