The ISI, the ruling dispensation and the Pakistan Army have left no stone unturned to ensure that Imran Khan stays in jail and out of active politics. The march to D-Chowk, comprising 10,000 members of Imran Khan’s party, PTI, was meant to be a game changer. It was meant to expose the role of the army and how it called the shots in Islamabad. However, it was met with brute force by the security forces, and the entire momentum died down with the protesters returning home.
This has exposed the PTI miserably, and the events after the protest show clear signs of several internal rifts within the party. Even the role of Imran Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, is being questioned, and many are of the view that she could possibly have been pocketed by the ISI and army to destroy her husband.
Soft on the army
Imran Khan’s primary fight is against the Pakistan Army. It was because of the army’s meddling that Khan lost power and was slapped with over 150 cases before being put in jail. He continues to remain in jail and is trying to run his party from there. So far he has not met with much success.
The turning point was how the protest held on November 24 fizzled out. For now, it looks as though the army has had its way, and Khan’s voice has once again been suppressed.
While there are several signs of rifts within the party, the one who is being viewed with much suspicion is Bushra Bibi. She, too, had been arrested with Khan but was released on October 24. Observers ask how she managed that privilege when Khan remains in jail. Moreover, since her visit, she has not visited Imran Khan even once. She has also not attended court hearings since her release, which has again raised eyebrows.
Imran Khan has repeatedly asserted that his wife is not a political leader. However, she has acted to the contrary, and since that statement was made, she released a video in which she spoke about a range of issues such as sharia and jihad. These are not in Imran Khan’s scheme of things, and his main fight is against the army. It is honestly strange that she did not utter a word about the army, be it for or against.
Was Bushra Bibi a threat to the army
Imran Khan has repeatedly maintained that his wife is not a political figure. Since her marriage to Khan, she has not been active on the political front. It was assumed by many that she will stay away from politics and hence would not pose any threat.
However, in recent times, she has raised eyebrows with her active participation in the affairs of the PTI. While her political activism has surprised many within the party, what has startled them more is that she is refusing to take instructions from Imran Khan.
Imran Khan has instructed his supporters to go to Juman Park. He had specifically told them not to go to D-Chowk as it was a red zone. However, Bushra Bibi, who led the protests, refused to take the instruction and went to D-Chowk instead.
At the protest site, she made a half-hearted speech that did not resonate with the supporters too well. However, the moment the crackdown began, she was the first to flee the scene along with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.
The Pakistan government says that it had offered Imran Khan several other choices to hold the protest. While Imran Khan had agreed to this suggestion, it was Bushra Bibi who stood firm and insisted on D-Chowk. This knowingly fully well shows that if the protest took place at D-Chowk, it would be crushed within minutes.
Prior to the protest, Bushra Bibi had appealed to party workers to stay firm and wait for Imran Khan to be released from jail. She said that none should listen to what he is saying from jail. Instead, they should wait for him to come and then take instructions. Her behaviour when the crackdown began was contrary to what she had told party workers, as she was the first one to flee from the site of protest.
All these are clear indicators that she poses no threat to the establishment. Her release, not attending court, not meeting Imran Khan, and not criticising the army, among her other actions, suggest that she is being controlled by someone. It could well be the army or the ISI, and there are whispers in Pakistan if she is being used by the establishment.
She may have struck a deal with the army and ISI. Her actions could be more counter-productive than beneficial to Imran Khan. If the whispers and murmurs are believed to be in the power corridors of Pakistan, then Bushra Bibi may be the go-to person for the establishment to weaken Imran Khan and his party.
