ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan in his 35-minutes speech to a campaign rally in Lahore restated what he has been saying for over a year now. He has remarkable stamina, gall and resilience to say the same things again and again. There was nothing new in his address to the crowd at the Doongi Ground, Samanabad, Lahore which was meant to buoy up the prospects of his candidate, Aleem Khan, who is pitched against Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) nominee Sardar Ayaz Sadiq in the by-poll to NA-122 constituency. Meanwhile, after a hiatus Reham Khan resumed her political activities to extend a helping hand to the PTI in the Lahore by-election. After the embarrassing defeat of his nominee in the Haripur by-poll, Imran Khan had stopped his spouse from undertaking any activities for the party saying that her plate was already full with too many things. Reham Khan made a full-fledged participation in the Lahore rally as she led a procession of women activists of the PTI to the Doongi Ground. However, she did not deliver a speech to the gathering. The public meeting marked Imran Khan’s journey from the sprawling Minar-e-Pakistan Lahore where the PTI reemerged as a political party to be reckoned with, with its landmark public meeting on October 30, 2011, to the small Doongi ground that could accommodate just a few thousands of people, who were no match to the other show. The difference between the gatherings at the Doongi Ground and Minar-e-Pakistan or previous PTI meetings in Lahore was enormous. This time, the participants were also not as charged as they used to be in the previous party rallies. Conscious of the massive coverage that the PTI chief will get on TV channels, the PML-N timed its own public meeting at Samanabad to take its share of the free publicity. To be fair with the independent media, most channels showed substantial objectivity as they also simultaneously aired live the PML-N rally along with that of the PTI although when Imran Khan spoke, only his speech was broadcasted and the PML-N leaders’ addresses were not aired but were publicized through tickers. There was tremendous difference between the coverage of the PTI activity that some TV channels accorded now and had given to it during its sit-in, which was part of a conspiracy to rock the democratic dispensation. At times the coverage, especially its mixing, turned out to be a ‘comic relief’. Interestingly, the speeches of Imran Khan and Ayaz Sadiq ended simultaneously. The PML-N did not allow the PTI to exclusively monopolize the TV channels. This demonstrated how seriously it is taking the contest knowing that the result will have a significant political impact although it will not disturb the parliamentary applecart. Reiterating his old claims, allegations and accusations, Imran Khan said that the PTI activists have prepared a plan to block rigging by the PML-N in which it masters. He hurled his old charges of corruption over the Sharif brothers. Matching the PTI chairman’s speech, first Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique addressed his party rally for quite some time, taking on Imran Khan. Later, Ayaz Sadiq took over. They alleged that the PTI was using billions of rupees to win the by-election and said if money would have worked, Aleem Khan would not have consistently lost the electoral competitions. While as per his policy Imran Khan found fault with the mega projects undertaken by Prime Minister Nawaz, Saad Rafique and Ayaz Sadiq talked about the gigantic development being executed by their government and vowed to continue them. “We have brought Imran Khan to the level of wards and union council,” Ayaz Sadiq said referring to the election campaign of the PTI chairman.
