The Shahbaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto led Pakistan government has again pulled the Research and Analysis Wing ‘(R&AW) card’ to delay the elections in Pakistan’s Punjab province, as they fear the growing popularity of Imran Khan. As per various reports, former prime minister Imran Khan is experiencing a growing popularity among the Pakistani populace.
Consequently, the government led by Sharif is concerned that if elections were to be held now, the political party headed by Imran Khan, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI), could potentially win the elections.
The Pakistan’s Defence Ministry has written to the Pakistan Supreme Court asking to delay the elections in Punjab province by saying that, “R&AW has identified fault lines to hurt the federation of Pakistan especially by fanning ethnic issues, water disputes.
The resource capture and monopoly of Punjab and as terrorists say in Balochistan, the colonisation by Punjab”.
“Therefore, holding of general elections of Punjab Assembly would fuel the situation,” the ministry said and adds that the terrorist threat might increase in the immediate future and decrease only around October 2023.
It is worth noting that the Pakistan Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Ijazul Ahsan had on 4 April declared the Election Commission of Pakistan ruling of delaying the elections in Pakistan’s Punjab province unconstitutional.
The Pakistan Election Commission (ECP) had, earlier on (22 March), delayed elections in the Punjab province from 14 May to 8 October.
The Pakistan Supreme Court has annulled this ECP decision and directed the Pakistan government to hold the elections on 14 May.
Despite the court’s decision to annul the ECP’s ruling and direct the government to hold elections on 14 May, the Pakistan Defence Ministry has raised concerns about the potential risks of conducting elections in Punjab province.
The ministry claims, “Pakistan would continue to be a victim of a Global Great Game, where India enjoys primacy with the permissive environment to hurt Pakistan through terrorism, targeting Chinese interests in the country”.
“Pakistan is threatened not only by insecurity due to external aggression but also by internal instability. Both are interlinked.
Internal chaos invites external aggression,” the ministry said
It said, “therefore, India would continue with strategic coercion including through terrorism in Pakistan and exploit any opportunity at the operational/tactical level for limited military action to all-out war”.
The report also points out the politically charged atmosphere in Pakistan and links various bombings by various homegrown terrorist organisations and freedom fighting movement Balochistan Liberation Army with R&AW.
The Defence Ministry says that “in wake of the highly charged political environment in Punjab/Country and the element of violence recently introduced into politics, the possibility of clashes among the political workers of various political parties has risen exponentially which complicates Law and order situation and is good for terrorists”.
“Provincial general elections in the province would fuel those sentiments.
Provincial assemblies of Balochistan and Sindh have already resolved against this”. “Senior leaders have also opined against the visualised monopoly of Punjab.
Hence, an even more charged environment in Punjab that can trigger instability in the country, besides a constitutional crisis,” the Defence Ministry report says.