OPINION: Pakistan is in a precarious state

Finally, the Pakistan army has shown its true colour to dominate the current chaotic political combination. The army under the command of General Syed Asim Munir was in a wait-and-watch situation with a well-thought strategy to hold the reins of the country through invisible hands.

The army gave abundant time to political parties to wash their dirty linen in public with the purpose to restore the lost image of its military might. General Munir, immediately after taking over as COAS, cunningly established his old relationship with Afghanistan after the US withdrew from there. His visits to Saudi Arabia and China were well-meaning to reduce the image of political leaders at the national level. The army succeeded in its mission, but subsequently kept the ruling PDM headed by Shehbaz Sharif in good humour to achieve its goal.

On the other hand, keeping the judiciary in the loop, General Munir also met the Chief Justice of the Pakistan Supreme Court who has taken an aggressive attitude against the ruling government for holding elections in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on the dates fixed by the court.

While putting the Army in the dock, Imran Khan held ISI officer Major General Faisal Naseer responsible, who tried to kill him twice and was also involved in the brutal murder of senior journalist Arshad Sharif in Kenya last October. He also questioned Shehbaz Sharif's governance.

During a rally on 7th May, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman had once again named a senior intelligence official for orchestrating plans to murder him. "I am on the roads despite verifiable threats to my life. I have already escaped an assassination attempt once. On the second occasion, I was able to sniff out murder planning," he had said.

On Imran's statement, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and former president Asif Zardari blasted Imran for hurling baseless allegations against a military officer, terming such a tirade an "actual attack on the Pakistan army."

The Pak army's patience was running thin against Imran Khan's anti-Pak army posture taken by him and was waiting for the appropriate time to act. It was an appropriate time chosen by the army when Imran Khan was taken into custody on 9 May by paramilitary Rangers from the premises of the Islamabad High Court, where he had arrived for hearings in two cases.
Meanwhile, Chief Justice at the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Aamer Farooq took strong exception over the arrest taking place at the IHC premises, Dawn reported.

His arrest has now pushed Pakistan to irreversible momentum when the protests have intensified in several cities in Pakistan. In unprecedented scenes, PTI supporters subsequently stormed the Pakistan army headquarters in Rawalpindi and the Corps Commander's residence in Lahore, according to local media reports.

Imran's popularity amongst youth will certainly enhance his image despite facing a clutch of cases. Remarkably, the Pak army is also a divided house. The young officers from the Brigadier rank to below have a soft corner for Imran Khan because of his speaking frankly in public.

Imran Khan, at present, is facing over 140 cases related to terrorism, blasphemy, murder, violence, and inciting violence. However, he has rejected all these cases as political victimization by the ruling alliance.

While Imran, after his departure from the Prime Minister's post, had launched a nationwide campaign vigorously against PDM and the army. Imran's allegations were that he was the victim of a political conspiracy hatched against him by PDM in connivance with the army.

In the given circumstances, it is too early to say if the army take over the command of Pakistan. But in all the possibilities and probabilities, army would play a guiding force behind political arrangements if the situation is saved from anarchy.

(R C Ganjoo is a senior journalist and columnist having more than 30 years experience of covering issues concerning national security, particularly Kashmir. He has worked with several prominent media groups and his articles have been published in many national and international publications.)

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of OneIndia and OneIndia does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.