Perils of Power Politics

Never before in the political history of Pakistan have such unique general elections taken place as they are expected to come about on February 8. Tracing the history of general elections from 1970 to 1977, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1997, 2002, 2008, and 2018, candidates and parties contesting in such polls were equally offered a level playing field with mandatory election symbols laced with the much-needed freedom to run their election campaigns. However, the 1985 Elections cannot be termed as free and fair because they were held on a non-party basis under the patronage of the martial law regime of General Zia-ul-Haq.

Notably, the year 2023 left behind a trail of violation of the Constitution, imposing an environment of fear and coercion after the events of May 9, 2023, which mainly targeted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and its Chairman Imran Khan, thereby unmasking the ugliest face of democracy in the country’s political history. For instance, provincial elections in Punjab and KPK, due in April after the dissolution of their respective assemblies in early 2023, were not held by the Election Commission of Pakistan despite the Supreme Court’s directives. After the dissolution of the National Assembly and the provincial assemblies of Balochistan and Sindh in August 2023, general elections were supposed to be held within 90 days, as mentioned in the 1973 Constitution. However, they were delayed till February 2024, when the SC Chief Justice ordered the Election Commission in the third week of December to announce the election schedule for the February 8 polls as soon as possible.

Ironically, pre-poll rigging was evident when the bulk of the PTI candidates’ nomination papers were rejected until the time election tribunals composed of the judiciary accepted the majority of appeals from that party, and they were allowed to contest elections. But, first, the Election Commission and then the Supreme Court rejected holding the intra-party elections of PTI. It deprived Pakistan’s most popular party of its election symbol, a cricket bat.’ After losing its election symbol, PTI had no option but to launch its candidates as independent candidates. Back-to-back acts of harassment and coercion by the ‘deep state’ and its compromised institutions like bureaucracy, election commission, and a segment of the judiciary put a question mark on the credibility and legitimacy of the February 2024 elections. Unfortunately, all political parties are allowed to contest elections freely and hold election meetings except the PTI.

The reference was given to the ‘London Plan’ whereby a deal was struck between Nawaz Sharif and a powerful actor representing an institution whereby Sharif had to be absolved of corruption cases and allowed to contest elections, thus paving the way for appointing him as Prime Minister for the fourth time! But the deal also had a caveat that the PTI Chairman had to be arrested, disqualified, and banned by his party. Except for the 1964 elections, when President Ayub Khan manipulated poll results to defeat Fatima Jinnah, no election can be comparable to the forthcoming elections. Even the 1977 general elections during Z. A. Bhutto’s regime were relatively free and fair, albeit rigging allegations during National Assembly polls held on March 7, which led to the electoral rout of the nine-party alliance called Pakistan National Alliance (PNA). However, the unopposed election of Prime Minister Z. A. Bhutto and all the chief ministers, by using coercive methods against their potential competitors, cast doubts about the fairness of the 1977 elections.