The crackling flames radiating yellow light from the burning vehicles and vegetation set ablaze by the hurled Molotov cocktails in the dark of the night with shady, hooded rioters playing steeple chase with law enforcers, right in the heart of Pakistan's federal capital, it appeared more of a scene from the famed Hollywood sci-fi movie Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Perhaps it might not be the evolution of apes ruling the earth, but the prevailing political situation of the country seems to have devolved into a paradigm shift in the leadership of the agitating Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI).
Once again, the PTI insisted on staging a sit-in at D-Chowk, right in front of Parliament inside the Red Zone, to press demands for the freeing of its jailed leader, Imran Khan, the former prime minister. It seems its protests have always coincided with the date of an important visit by a foreign delegation. This week, it's the President of Belarus, flanked by some 70 delegates, who was here to seal important negotiations and deals. The pattern of PTI blocking the Red Zone on such significant occasions, particularly with dignitaries from the left block visiting Pakistan, has been consistent for over a decade.
Things took a dramatic turn when Bushra Bibi, the controversial third wife of Imran Khan, hidden under her signature veil, jumped on a truck to lead the protest march all the way from Peshawar to Islamabad. She has reportedly been guiding and tuning the political acumen of Imran Khan in the light of her infamous occult-driven mysticism that has captured the imagination of the former cricketing hero, seasoning him into politics for long. In a surprising shift from the sidelines to the frontline of national politics, leading packs of the mob was actually the launching of the changeover within PTI with a centralised, more rigid and determined leadership, and that too with a touch of a new string of religion.
The deadlock between the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz Group PML/N) government that the former premier Imran Khan would not be released under the duress of crowd pressure, whereas the protesters were determined to take Khan along.
What tasted bad in the mouth is being cemented by the void and the bitterness prevailing between the political government and the state versus PTI. The dilemma is that the statements of government politicians reflect only frustration over the miscalculations while the affairs seem to have moved out of the hands of the second cadre of PTI. On the other, Imran Khan's narcissism and sudden appearance of Bushra Bibi, aliased as Pinky Peerni, have spurred the well-intact anti-state anarchism patterns that have become a hallmark of the party.
A rapprochement among the West-led Israel and the Arab world being led by Saudi Arabia, the custodian of the Holy cities, dismayed the native South Asian Islamic sentiments, as well as those Deobandi firebrands who feel orphaned after the Saudi policy framework somersault
A Coincidence…NO! That might be serving an alien agenda against the evolving best economic interests of Pakistan. For over a decade, PTI's anti-state agenda has been so overt it blocked the trip of the Chinese President (2014), the prime minister, affected the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SOC) summit in October and now the visit of the Belarusian president and so on. Imran Khan had quite often compromised Pakistan-China relations, as well as bilateral relations with the United States.
In the third significant attack on the country's external relations last week, nobody but Bushra Bibi exposed her hidden political ambition and compromised Pakistan with Saudi Arabia to gain personal political mileage out of the religious factor. It was later regretted as not being PTI's official stance.
An Alien Agenda…? The scope of this 'going anarchic' approach of the PTI is far beyond a regular one. The new conflict trigger seems well aligned with the shifting international policy framework.
The religiously radicalised mobilisation of the Saudi Salafist jurisprudence Islam of yore needs to be sidelined to make space in this region for its antithesis, as the former has done its job, and the latter ideologue needs to take over. An artificial graft of Salfism was required over four decades ago to promote jihadist sentiments against the former Soviet Union, and in the aftermath of the demise of the Soviet Union, it galvanised terrorism and evolved counterterrorism industries. Since both the targets are being well accomplished, things have moved on to the implementation of the takeaways from the Abraham-II mega economic initiative with Israel in the pivot. A rapprochement among the West-led Israel and the Arab world being led by Saudi Arabia, the custodian of the Holy cities, dismayed the native South Asian Islamic sentiments, as well as those Deobandi firebrands who feel orphaned after the Saudi policy framework somersault.
Enter the Peerni… Last week's allegations levelled by Bushra Bibi against Saudi Arabia might not just be a slip of the tongue, but a well-thought-out conflict trigger to recharge the religious sentiments of the Barelvi school of thought - that believes in the shrine-based, ritualised bent of Islam, perceived to be in direct ideological confrontation with the Salafist jurisprudence Islam. What was once thought to be a flexible, accommodating and tolerant Sufic version of Islam and the best replacement for the Salafist graft, the social mobilisation of the Barelvi school of thought with its different shades, has fully gripped Pakistan with its radicalism and is another extreme to reckon with.
The release of Pinky Peerni in a bid to replace the PTI leadership at the top level with an agreeable, flexible and compromising one, who is ready to bend at any level unlike Imran Khan who is an inflexible, self-righteous and ego-driven Pied Piper of Islamabad
This twisted version of the 'faith of peace' is something that political circles in Washington, DC, had started whispering about almost a quarter century ago as the best replacement for the religio-political regional situation. Both versions of political Islam ultimately lead to radicalisation and religious extremism, which does not tolerate anything beyond their nose.
Who's syphoning… The question is from where have the assurances consistently been flowing in that have been reinvigorating and re-launching the PTI?
It is sad to see that the PTI leadership and their followers do not seem to respect any logic, law and regulation, but what their leadership desires so…
Dancing with the wolves… Bushra Bibi creeps in as a surprising element for the change in political leadership in PTI, sideling even founder Imran Khan - where the exponential elevation of Imran Khan's political stature as an imprisoned paramount leader of the party remains.
The cultist cover of Peerni and her superstitious bunch among the pack appear well trained in sabotage, exactly in line with jihadists who were trained for various purposes in the past. This deserves a thorough investigation. Whether Bushra Bibi is driven by a self-patronised agenda or aligned with Imran Khan remains a question mark.
Local analysts believe, whether it was a string of administrative blunders, strategic miscalculations to counter-protesters, the release of Pinky Peerni in a bid to replace the PTI leadership at the top level with an agreeable, flexible and compromising one, who is ready to bend at any level unlike Imran Khan who is an inflexible, self-righteous and ego-driven Pied Piper of Islamabad. She might not only be replacing the PTI's paramount leadership but making it completely irrelevant, the rising second-tier leadership of the party comprising Gohar Ayub, Asad Qaiser, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Engineer Ali Muhammad, Shibli Faraz, Ali Amin Gandapur and others.
Bushra Bibi's leadership ascertained that with Imran Khan behind bars, the second-tier leadership failed to live up to the expectations of PTI's followers. They committed expected political blunders and ultimately reduced the PTI to a political pigmy from the monster it had become. It's quite apparent that Bushra Bibi would lead the party and the zombie followers, tuned to her cultist religious flute, whereas Imran Khan would be playing his ego flute in isolation while the country struggles with deepening internal security issues, amid efforts to come out of isolation in the international arena.