Pakistan Bulletin
An up-to-date and informed analysis of key issues of Pakistan.
A Self Defeating Protest
November 2024
The recent confrontation between the federal government and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, led by the former Prime Minister Imran Khan, resulted in violence and internet restrictions exacerbating the state of insecurity and instability in the country. The article presents the details of the events of the late November showdown.
While the year 2024 has been marked by numerous protests taken out by the workers and leadership of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to pressurise the government to release the jailed PTI leader former Prime Minister Imran Khan, the November protest, also called the “Final Call” by the party leadership resulted in bloodshed and instability. The protest call was led by the spouse of Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi and Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur from 24-27 November. Workers from all across Pakistan, particularly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab made their way to Islamabad. In a bid to stop them, the government closed highways and motorways leading to Islamabad, while blocking the city with containers and shutting the internet services in the entire country. While the party workers and the security forces clashed on and off during the three days of the march, towards the third day, an operation was launched to push back the party workers. According to reports, at least six people, including four security personnel, were killed on 26 November. Meanwhile, hundreds were injured as the security forces deployed crowd-containment equipment, including tear gas and rubber bullets.
According to political analysts, PTI’s inability to free its leader from the jail through the recent protest call has put to rest all speculations of a “cosy relationship” between the establishment and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
The impressions of closeness between the establishment and the party started when the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gandapur, met the party founder and former Prime Minister, Imran Khan. Ansar Abbasi, a journalist associated with a national daily, reported that a top government figure indicated the government’s openness to “hold talks with the PTI”. There were speculations that meeting between the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the former Prime Minister was for the purpose of discussing a deal. The PTI founder is also believed to have told the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister that he is willing to negotiate provided that the initiative comes from the government’s side. He also insisted that the talks should be with the “authorised people”, presumably with the establishment.
According to political analysts, PTI’s inability to free its leader from the jail through the recent protest call has put to rest all speculations of a “cosy relationship” between the establishment and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
However, sources in Islamabad believe that the establishment has made it clear that it is not ready to interfere in political affairs. At the same time, a nine-minute long video message was released by the former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi, based in Peshawar. In this video, the role of Saudi Arabia was criticised concerning the dismissal of former Prime Minister Imran Khan. This message proved to be self-destructive and damaging as the government found a tool to attack the party for levelling allegations against a friendly country. It must be noted that Pakistan’s constitution bars any negative comment against friendly countries. Following her statement, three separate first information reports (FIRs) were filed against her in different districts of Punjab.
The central figures of the recent protests were Bushra Bibi, the former First Lady and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur. Sitting in the Chief Minister Khyber Pakhttunkhwa’s House, Bushra Bibi announced the protest plan. She called PTI delegations from across the country. Each provincial leader of the party was instructed to organise a crowd of 5,000 protestors while the members of the national assembly were asked to bring 10,000 protestors per MNA.
The preparations for the protests coincided with the killing of forty people on November 21, in an attack on a caravan in Kurram, Khyber Pakthunkhwa, by unknown persons. This was followed by sectarian clashes that have led to the killings of over 100 citizens in the region so far.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has been battling with serious security challenges in the recent months. In the southern districts, including Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, North Waziristan, and Bannu, the government’s writ is almost non-existent. The region has been besieged by a spate of attacks against security forces in the recent months. In this situation, it was thought that perhaps PTI would withdraw the call for the protest. However, this did not happen.
PTI started its protest on November 24, as Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur left Peshawar with a convoy of protestors marching to Islamabad. Unlike last time, there were fewer numbers of official vehicles and machinery. In earlier protests, several provincial government vehicles were seized by the Punjab and Islamabad police. As the convoy of the Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the former First Lady reached Islamabad, their body language was confident and self-assured. The spouse of the former Prime Minister, Bushra Bibi, was chanting slogans while Ali Amin Gandapur was removing barricades on the M1 Motorway to Islamabad.
As soon as they entered Islamabad, Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi invited the leaders of PTI for talks. A delegation led by senior PTI party officials also met the former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Adiala jail to get his approval for a “possible deal”. However, later, Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told a press conference that despite an earlier agreement to change the venue of the protest gathering, the procession is moving towards D Chowk, a red zone in the national capital. Expressing his frustration, he linked this action of PTI with “support” from some members of the establishment.
When the protestors reached D Chowk, rumours started that the sit-in also had the blessings of the establishment. By this time, four Rangers and one policeman had died in the clashes during the protests. According to sources, the situation was “serious”. A retired senior official was invited to persuade the party workers to withdraw. However, by that time, the crowd was not willing to leave Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur for a meeting under any circumstances. That is why the retired senior official also refused to become an arbitrator between the federal government and the PTI.
Political analysts believe that first, the video message of Bushra Bibi and then the violent protests in Islamabad without any political gains worked as a political suicide for PTI.
Meanwhile, reports of the imposition of Governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa started circulating. Pakistan’s constitution allows the President to announce governor rule in a province in special circumstances. However, it is said that President Asif Ali Zardari had already rejected this proposal in the recent past. Security circles believe that some elements wanted to achieve their goals through promoting violence in the middle of the protests. Hence, the establishment was avoiding any trouble.
By the third day of the protest, the government decided to take action to evacuate the protestors from D Chowk. Rangers and the police – both working under Federal Interior Ministry – were directed to take limited action and clear Islamabad’s D Chowk of the protestors. Meanwhile, almost all the small groups of protestors had reached the Blue Area. In terms of security, the protestors were in the middle of the road, while there was a heavy contingent of security men surrounding them. In the middle of this showdown, the Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Federal Information Minister Azam Nazir Tarar held a joint press conference and said that Afghan citizens were also present in the procession and the protesters had modern weapons to inflict casualties and spread terror. Meanwhile, ministers used a tougher tone that seemed to raise fears of a crackdown. Shortly thereafter, when darkness fell on the Margalla Hills, the lights of the Blue Area were turned off, and the operation began. During this operation, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and Bushra Bibi disappeared mysteriously.
The next day, there were burnt trucks and vehicles of protesters on the roads and streets of Blue Area, while Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, was addressing the workers in the Mansehra district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, condemning the violence on the protestors and reiterating the continuation of the “Final Call” for the release of the former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Political analysts believe that first, the video message of Bushra Bibi and then the violent protests in Islamabad without any political gains worked as a political suicide for PTI. PTI leader and former provincial minister Shaukat Yusufzai has asked for a probe against party leaders involved in the fiasco. Sources in the PTI suggest that there is bitterness between Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and Bushra Bibi over the handling of the “Final Call”.
While normalcy has returned to the country after the government’ action to crush the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s protest in the last week of November, Pakistan’s politics has lost yet another round to the forces of authoritarianism that still occupy the ranks of Pakistan’s political system.
Join Our Mailing List
Get the latest news and updates from our team