WHAT DO TERRORISM ALLEGATIONS MEAN FOR IMRAN KHAN, PAKISTAN'S FORMER PRIME MINISTER?

            

           Experts think charges stemming from allegations made during a rally speech are unlikely to damage a politician's career.

Imran khan distinguishes out even in a region with many colorful political figures. Khan is a tenacious populist politician who, after two decades of attempting, finally came to power in Pakistan in 2018. Given his background, khan's social conservatism, anti-western stance, and religious rhetoric are all the more startling.

Khan was born in 1952 and raised in an affluent household in Lahore. He attended prestigious schools and the University of Oxford for his education. He rose to fame as one of the most extraordinarily gifted and valiant cricket players ever, captaining his country to victory. After quitting sports, active charity work was followed by a religious conversion and the beginning of a political career.

Khan ultimately disproved the doubters. The former athlete became a legitimate contender for office thanks to tenacity, good fortune, and a straightforward populist message that appealed to profound discontent. Khan pledged to create a "new Pakistan" that was free of corruption, effectively administered, and independent of the us and the west. Beyond Pakistan’s mainstream psalmist organizations, his piety, social conservatism, and undeniable personal integrity were attractive qualities. Importantly, the country's ruthless military, which controls Pakistan’s politics, eventually, backed his campaign. Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party won elections in 2018 after a few close calls.

Khan experienced a fate that many of his forebears experienced. Since Pakistan’s founding in 1948, no prime minister has held office for the full five years. While his handling of the Covid epidemic has been praised, high expectations were not met because he was unable to identify measures that provided respite from Pakistan’s ongoing difficulties. He desired to establish a brand-new Pakistan, but how? It's actually very complicated, and blaming Islam isn't the answer, according to Gareth price, a south Asia specialist at Chatham house in London.

Perhaps more importantly, khan made a well-known mistake by attempting to sway the decision regarding who would lead Pakistan’s notorious ISI, the country's military intelligence agency. The number of powerful generals who recognized a threat to their interests was sufficient to weaken the prime minister gravely. An activist opposition that had previously failed to pressure khan seized the chance. He was removed from office in April of this year as a result of a no-confidence vote in parliament after several weeks of political unrest.

According to journalist Musharraf zaidi, khan has successfully resisted, turning into "the ultimate embodiment of the anti-status quo in Pakistan." This may help to understand why the former prime minister is now facing police charges after questioning the judiciary's objectivity in his addresses at significant gatherings in the heartland of his support. Khan might still get involved in legal matters that could result in his probable exclusion from politics even if it is doubtful that he will be detained because doing so could cause issues for the existing coalition administration.

"Khan’s messaging is pretty loud and cutting, but it's very challenging to establish that he could be charged with terrorism under any legal interpretation," says the author. He has never had more street authority than he does right now. The goal may be to quiet him and prevent him from participating in politics, according to Washington, dc-based south Asia analyst Michael kugelman of the Wilson center.

One of the world's most unstable regions is home to the nuclear-armed nation of Pakistan. The recent global hikes in grain and gasoline prices have severely impacted many south Asian nations, but Pakistan is more susceptible than many others. Deadly floods are wrecking havoc in its south-western province; Islamic militant violence is on the rise; it has enormous debts; an IMF bailout looms and could result in subsidy reductions that will harm common people; unemployment is skyrocketing; public services are pitifully inadequate; and relations with India, China, Afghanistan, and Iran range from hostile to very complicated.

Kugelman said that Pakistan is in a difficult situation and that the last thing the nation needs is "petty politics" to divert attention from more pressing matters. Price agreed.

Khan once said that Pakistani politics were like "facing six balls from a fast bowler without pads, helmet, or gloves." the comparison still applies. The former cricket player has a long future ahead of him.