Rule of chaos

The PTI’s much-hyped ‘final call’ ended as abruptly as it began – without notice, without preparation, and without accountability. On Tuesday night, PTI workers and supporters were left to fend for themselves when Bushra Bibi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur vanished from the Islamabad protest. Reports later emerged that they had conveniently ‘escaped’ to KP, leaving a trail of disillusionment behind them. The abandonment of its workers is a recurring pattern in the PTI’s politics. These supporters, who genuinely love and hero-worship PTI founder Imran Khan, have stood steadfast through thick and thin. They believed Bushra Bibi’s bold declaration that they would not leave D-Chowk until Imran Khan’s release. They trusted the promises of their leadership that a revolution was imminent and the PTI’s ‘stolen mandate’ would be restored. But instead of leading them, PTI leadership left them stranded in the midst of a harsh security crackdown, facing rubber bullets and tear gas alone.

This pattern raises troubling questions about the PTI’s priorities and strategy. Since Imran Khan’s incarceration, the party’s leadership seems to treat its workers as expendable – used for dramatic displays and then discarded. Whether this is due to backdoor deals, external pressure, or sheer incompetence, the outcome remains the same: a betrayal of trust and an indifference to human cost. Meanwhile, CM Gandapur’s misplaced focus on the protest is equally disturbing. With his province reeling under severe crises – terrorism, ongoing clashes in Kurram district that have claimed over 100 lives, and a World Bank report highlighting alarming rates of depression among women and pregnant women in KP – his priorities should have been clear. Instead, the province’s entire administrative machinery was diverted to a protest that accomplished little beyond road blockages, internet shutdowns, and public chaos. The violence seen in Islamabad – perpetrated by both the state and PTI – must be unequivocally condemned. The government’s tendency to shut down the country whenever the PTI announces a protest, and the PTI’s reckless use of its workers and resources to storm the capital, reflect poorly on both sides. Observers have called the PTI’s ‘final call’ a significant setback, and the party would do well to heed such warnings.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has rightly called for purposeful political dialogue between the government and PTI, both in parliament and through inter-party channels. The loss of life during these protests – whether of law-enforcement personnel or political workers – has received far too little attention amidst the political drama. Any casualty, regardless of affiliation, should be unacceptable. However, any exaggeration of casualties to stoke emotions is equally condemnable. Claiming deaths in the hundreds without evidence does no favours to anyone’s credibility. The government, for its part, must resist the urge to mock the PTI for its political failures and instead engage it in dialogue. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s statement calling for tough decisions to rid the country of agitation and instability may be a sign of something other than that though and one would counsel the government to rethink any reactive steps – regardless of the PTI’s behaviour. It is time for all sides to prioritise the national interest over petty political theatrics and ensure that no more lives are lost in this relentless power struggle.