Adil Najam
Flying in from London to Islamabad, I bumped into Imran Khan on the plane. There he was, sitting a couple of rows ahead of me, reading The News, with his own picture on its front page (meeting Nawaz Sharif in London). I had not yet seen the paper, nor followed that days events in London (I was flying in from Amsterdam where I had been in meetings all day). We exchanged a few pleasantries, said nice things about what we had been up to since we had last met in Chicago just about a year ago (I had reported in detail on that here).
I must say, I did not fully grasp everything he said until later after I landed in Islamabad and first saw his supporters and TV cameras lined up at the airport, and then every news channel covering his press conference in London, and its political implications. In our short conversation he pretty much covered the exact same points I saw him presenting on TV,with pretty much the same passion. I guess he had come fresh from the press conference. Since all of that is now in the news already, I will not repeat it. The one thing I did ask him about were rumors about his ‘patch up’ with the MQM leading to the lifting of the ban on his entry into Sindh. Readers would remember those rumors surfacing everywhere, including on ATP, a few days ago. He shrugged those away as nonsense and just rumors.
My own sense from this very brief discussion chat was that:
(a) he does seem very serious abut taking on MQM Chief Altaf Hussain,
(b) that he fully realizes the seriousness of what he is doing, and
(c) he seems to be doing this out of personal conviction much more than political opportunism.
I may turn out to be wrong, but my first impression was that the earnestness with which he spoke about what he was doing and why that cannot be easily faked. This, then, seems not to be a story that will fizzle away easily. Not if Imran can help it.
If this is, in fact, so then Pakistan politics will continue to become even more interesting than it already is. ‘Party’ politics may just come back into limelight, but not ways one had expected. If indeed there are to be elections in Pakistan soon then the impact of this tussle could go well beyond defining what happens to just Imran Khan and the MQM.
By the way, as it turned out it was an interesting PIA fight to be on. Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao boarded soon after me. As did Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan (returning, I believe from the WTO meeting in Geneva). They both greeted Imran with graciously, and briefly, and then then nearly all of us made teh best of the overnight flight by going off to sleep. Of course, I first watched the ‘Tribute to a Legend’ show on filmstar Muhammad Ali on the PIA channel.
P.S. In case you wonder, no, I did not speak to either of the Ministers. I do not know either of them, and would not have known what to say anyhow, especially if either of them had seen my own most recent musings on the political happenings in Pakistan.
sorry for the repetiton..hope it works now…
the correct link to
George Galloway in the house of commons
(for Imran Khan´s cause)
http://tinyurl.com/2zpftp
I think it will be very unfortunate if people of pakistan continue o be skeptical of imran Khan. He is honest, passionate, hard working, sincere and has tremendous leadership qualities. He feels for the poor people of pakistan and will never comprmise on priciples. His record stands for this. How many rich politicians, generals and pirs have spend the time effort or money to built hospitals and educational intitutes for the poor of this country like imran did? I can only hope that educated young people will be at the fore front of his political party. It pleases me that there are no so called “big names” in his party who will waste no time in switching their alliances. The people of karachi won’t be fooled for long and it is just a matter of time when pir of london and his crooks will be exposed to the full.
I see Imran as the only hope for our future and will wholeheartedly support him in his mission.I would like to know how Adil view him as a political leader. He needs good people to help him formulate an economic and political agenda for his party.
Here is Imran on BBC Hard Talk
http://tinyurl.com/yq48wb
Just a brief comment here
Whether Imran Khan turn out to be good or bad for Pakistan we definately dont need Altaf Hussain, Benazir and Nawaz Sharif for Pakistan any more….They are all bad news for Pakistan as they have proven over and over again..
God help Pakistan
http://www.moveforjustice.org/News
here is the link again…
George Galloway in the house of commons
(for Imran Khan´s cause)
http://www.moveforjustice.org/News/tabid/60/articl eType/ArticleView/articleId/205/Default.aspx
Nawaz Sharif has already declared support for Imran in his legal battle against Altaf. Benazir should take a similar position.
BB’s support will not make the case any stronger but it will be a strong political statement to MQM and the rest of he world.
Sidhas,
It was JI and JIT whose terror in the sindh cities and university campuses gave MQM the momentum they needed to have ultimate supremacy in urban sindh. Yes agencies were there to help but the popular support actually came as a revulsion to JI’s tacit terror. Even today JIT is involved in those activities. Just four years ago a sindhi student, an only child of his parents, was beaten to death by JIT at sindh medical college in karachi because his group ignored JIT’s warning to not to celebrate their graduation from the med school as they considered it unislamic. [Liaqat Baloch is a king of ethos these days but just ask anyone from lahore what he was doing in the 70s and 80s on PU campus. Both him and "Hafiz" Salman Butt]. This happened at a massive scale in the 70s and 80s until people saw MQM as their savior. Of course MQM itself turned into a frankenstein with no one to stop them. I think in Imran they met have a 5000 pound gorilla who is effective where, in MQM’s context, it matters the most; in London, where altaf resides and where there are no secotr incharge or unit incharge men with gunmen to proetct him. British media and courts would be less than kind to Altaf with even a fraction of the atrcities he has commited as evidence against him. I am a karachite and I say enough is enough. Enough of Jamat Islami’s unique brand of terror and enough of MQM’s ruthless terror.