Terroristan - March 31, 2022

[sanman]

So who can tell me about Jahangir Khan Tareen and this new party which he has suddenly floated, IPP (Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party) ?

Is this party the Army's new replacement for Imran's PTI?

Who will be the front face of this party? Will it be Tareen himself, or someone else?

What is Imran Khan's reaction to this move by his old moneyman Tareen?

[skaranam]

This would be PTI minus IK.

[Manish_P]

Since equations (quadratic) are in fashion, jihadistan should have it's own... So here goes

Ekdum Naya Pakistan is IIP

IIP = PTI - I

Dividing by I gives,

IP = PT

So I=T

Thus ekdum naya Pakistan is IT (not software).

But we know that purana Pakistan was also IT.

Hence proved that, Pakistan is Pakistan, naya or purana doesn't matter!

* Note - before learned maulaners here object, please note that the maths used above is strictly madarsa type. and the logic is lahori. So If you lose a few brain cells trying to understand or correct it, then you only have yourself to blame...

[sanman]

This would be PTI minus IK.

Sure, but what is its future in the Pakistani ruling structure?

We all know that Army is ruling everything behind the scenes. But there's the civilian govt out front, with the various parties now acting as sock-puppets. That civilian facade is currently made of PML(S)+PPP, which replaced PTI when it was ousted from power.

So where will this new IPP go? I'm presuming it's being held in reserve, for when Army decides to throw out PML+PPP.

But who is its front man? IPP has no front man, like Imran Khan.
PML(S) has a front man, Shahbaz Sharif.
PPP has a front man, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
How can IPP operate without a front man, like the kind Imran Khan used to be for PTI?

Who will vote for IPP, when it has no front man to campaign with?
Who would the Army likely come up with, to be front man for IPP?
Is there anyone? Does it matter?

[Dilbu]

3 soldiers martyred in gun battle with terrorists in North Waziristan: ISPR

Three soldiers were martyred during a gun battle with terrorists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s North Waziristan district, the military’s media affairs wing said on Sunday. In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that an exchange of fire took place between troops and terrorists in Miran Shah on the night of June 9/10.

[Manish_P]

...

Who will vote for IPP, when it has no front man to campaign with?
Who would the Army likely come up with, to be front man for IPP?
Is there anyone? Does it matter?

I guess you must be living in the West.

Else you would know that in bakistan it doesn't matter who the people vote for.. nor who the front man is..

It's who the boiz in the back select that gets shown to have been elected.

And becomes the next beggar-in-chief

[A_Gupta]

Worth revisiting, even if it has been posted before:

[Dilbu]

Afghan Refugee Crackdown Continues in Pakistan Despite Taliban Objections

Pakistan is continuing a months-long crackdown on Afghan refugees living in the country, detaining hundreds of people accused of lacking proper documentation.

Taliban leaders have asked Pakistan to stop the process "immediately." Not only has it continued, but Afghan refugees in Pakistan have told VOA that the crackdown in recent days has intensified in Islamabad, Rawalpindi and adjacent areas.

"Unfortunately, the detentions have intensified, and it still continues," said Shukria, an Afghan refugee who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban’s takeover.

Shukria, who asked that her full name be withheld, told VOA that the security forces arrested "even those refugees who have UNHCR’s documents."

She added that some Afghan refugees were arrested at their homes.

Abdul Karim Haqqani, a Taliban official in the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad, told VOA on Wednesday that 300-400 Afghans have been detained by Pakistani security forces.

He added that they are trying to negotiate with the Pakistani officials for their "immediate release."

Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s newly appointed special envoy to Afghanistan, told VOA that those Afghans "without proper documents, or he or she has overstayed their visa limit, there is a law that they will be detained."

Quoting Pakistani officials, local media reported that undocumented Afghans face deportation.

But Arsala Khan, an Afghan refugee who works as a laborer at Islamabad’s Fruit and Vegetable Market, told VOA that he was detained while working even though he had his refugee card on him.

[Anujan]

This fellow (who questioned an Indian army chief bombastically and fashions himself as an arm chair jihadi) has now got cases registered against him (probably at the ishara of big danda Munir) for supporting PTI

https://twitter.com/WajSKhan/status/1668306824221667347

Wajahat S. Khan
@WajSKhan
Today, I came across news reports which indicate that several charges have been filed against me in Pakistan.

These charges – which include aiding, abetting and instigating violence, terrorism and treason – have been filed by a resident of Islamabad, an individual unknown to me

It was all entertaining reading. Till he ended his rant with

Insha’Allah, the truth shall prevail.

Did he just sign off with Sathyameva Jayate ?

Is he one of ours? A deep undercover RAA agint?

[drnayar]

This fellow (who questioned an Indian army chief bombastically and fashions himself as an arm chair jihadi) has now got cases registered against him (probably at the ishara of big danda Munir) for supporting PTI

https://twitter.com/WajSKhan/status/1668306824221667347

Wajahat S. Khan
@WajSKhan
Today, I came across news reports which indicate that several charges have been filed against me in Pakistan.

These charges – which include aiding, abetting and instigating violence, terrorism and treason – have been filed by a resident of Islamabad, an individual unknown to me

It was all entertaining reading. Till he ended his rant with

Insha’Allah, the truth shall prevail.

Did he just sign off with Sathyameva Jayate ?

Is he one of ours? A deep undercover RAA agint?

He is a pathan ., they tend to think somewhat differently from other peacefuls ..personally know a few, and most of them have given up on pakiland , moved overseas lock stock and barrel !.. as i see it they are more friendly to hindus and less likely to "bomb" , pun intended

[A_Gupta]

That youtube above with Arya and Devasher has a take on Pashtuns.

Among other things, they take Abdul Wali's "I have been a Pashtun for six thousand years, a Muslim for thirteen hundred years, and a Pakistani for twenty-five", and point out longstanding Pashtun cultural characteristics, and very deep cultural ties with Bharat. They point out that the Pakjabi has no such rootedness, they have an invented identity as anti-Indians, and that is the source of the problem.

(Added: it would seem that the Taliban are a historical aberration. But even the supposedly Wahhabi Mullah Omar supposedly did some form of ancestor worship.)

[Vayutuvan]

Since equations (quadratic) are in fashion, jihadistan should have it's own... So here goes
...
Hence proved that, Pakistan is Pakistan, naya or purana doesn't matter!

"pure" logic onlee.

[Dilbu]

Imran Khan’s Ill-Fated Revolution

The situation came to a head on May 9, when Khan was arrested on corruption charges, an event that sent his supporters into the streets. Mobs attacked the army headquarters and several military installations, precipitating a crackdown. Khan’s followers have been arrested en masse, and many leaders of his party have quit, some under pressure from the military. It seems unlikely that Khan’s challenge to the ruling establishment will ever be able to regain the strength it once seemed to possess. Khan, often lampooned as a populist hothead, fought for himself more than for democracy, and his orchestration of violence to demonstrate his popularity could precipitate his defeat by the army. Instead of safeguarding Pakistan’s fragile democracy, Khan’s refusal to compromise with other civilian parties has added to the abiding strength of the generals and the tenacity of their grip on the country.

When Khan challenged the military after his ouster from office, some observers thought it presaged a momentous change in Pakistani politics. They thought this charismatic leader could perhaps finally marshal enough support to unseat the military as Pakistan’s final arbiter. But the events of May 9, when Khan’s supporters attacked army installations in what have since been proved to be well-planned operations, have effectively snuffed out this challenge. The attacks provided the army and Khan’s civilian opponents an excuse for harsh measures, including a ban on Khan’s appearance on Pakistani television channels. Khan’s reckless calls for revolution may have opened the door for the military to enlist the support of civilians opposed to Khan and further cement its hold on the country.

The government and the military expect this quick capitulation by PTI’s second tier to help erode Khan’s political base. The former prime minister’s appeals for international support in condemning the Pakistani state’s alleged human rights violations are also proving ineffective so far. Foreign governments, especially those in the West, have followed Khan’s indignant campaign with, at best, quizzical interest. Khan has denigrated Western democracy in the past, claiming it does not create opportunities for the masses to improve their living conditions, while praising China’s one-party system for offering a better model. He is now finding it hard to reinvent himself as Pakistan’s new icon of democracy.

The military had hoped at the time that Khan would provide a useful civilian façade for policies dictated by the army’s high command. But by early 2022, the military leadership and Khan fell out over his visceral hatred for the United States, the Islamist and nationalistic tinges in his rhetoric, and his failure to manage the country’s economy. Khan also clashed with the then army chief, whose tenure Khan extended once but balked at extending again and who feared that Khan wanted to emulate Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in controlling the army and making himself all-powerful.

When the military withdrew support from Khan, it expressed a desire to withdraw from politics, although few considered it credible or likely, given Pakistan’s checkered history. The traditional parties that have locked horns with the military in the past were able to peel off Khan’s coalition partners and topple his government through a parliamentary vote of no confidence. Had Khan accepted the vote of no confidence as part of parliamentary democratic practice, and chosen to sit in opposition, the politicians could have, together, ended the military’s role by ensuring that major policy decisions were made after deliberation in parliament, rather than in the shadows in concert with military officers. The military, stung by the failure with Khan, might also have accepted withdrawal from the domestic political arena, even while retaining a say in Pakistan’s national security and foreign policy and maintaining its share in the economy.

Every major actor in the current power play has erred in one way or another. Khan has erred in trying to return to power by inciting riots. His refusal to compromise with other politicians—whom he describes as “looters,” “crooks,” and “traitors”—might make him popular with his followers, but it is a recipe for violence. That chaos, in turn, has invited military intervention to restore law and order, a move that only further damages Pakistan’s democratic prospects.

The civilian government under Khan’s adversaries has erred in refusing to announce a date for the next parliamentary election. If they had simply selected a date, Khan would have been forced to campaign rather than orchestrate protests against his ouster. Their reluctance to do so speaks to their desire to seek Khan’s disqualification before staging any election. The traditional parties that are part of the government should not have shied away from elections even if they find Khan’s populist politics unpalatable and intimidating. Moreover, Pakistan’s Supreme Court has yet to learn to rule according to the law and constitution, rather than according to the chief justice’s political preferences. The chief justice’s refusal to include judges that disagree with him in deciding politically significant cases reeks of partisanship. For its part, the Pakistani military has still not learned to let politics take its course instead of intervening, overtly or behind the scenes, every few years.

But an unlikely triumph for Khan—if he could, against all odds, win an election and return to power—would not necessarily bode well for the country. Pakistan could end up under a civilian autocrat bent on reprisals against his many enemies. In either case, the military will have plenty of reasons to remain politically engaged, and the dream of a fully democratic Pakistan, run by civilians and not soldiers, will remain unfulfilled.

[g.sarkar]

He is a pathan ., they tend to think somewhat differently from other peacefuls ..personally know a few, and most of them have given up on pakiland , moved overseas lock stock and barrel !.. as i see it they are more friendly to hindus and less likely to "bomb" , pun intended

Their goodwill to Hindus (and Sikhs and Buddhists too) and their (Hindu/Sikh/Buddhist) temples do not extend to those living in Afghanistan. So, let us not get too excited.
Gautam

[Manish_P]

He is a pathan ., they tend to think somewhat differently from other peacefuls ..personally know a few, and most of them have given up on pakiland , moved overseas lock stock and barrel !.. as i see it they are more friendly to hindus and less likely to "bomb" , pun intended

Their goodwill to Hindus (and Sikhs and Buddhists too) and their (Hindu/Sikh/Buddhist) temples do not extend to those living in Afghanistan. So, let us not get too excited.
Gautam

+1

Such a simple truth, yet so easily overlooked..

[Deans]

This fellow (who questioned an Indian army chief bombastically and fashions himself as an arm chair jihadi) has now got cases registered against him (probably at the ishara of big danda Munir) for supporting PTI

He seems to be less of an arm chair Jihadi (I listen to his podcasts) since 9th May. Speaking English and living in US make him a Pak expert in some
circles.

[Deans]

He is a pathan ., they tend to think somewhat differently from other peacefuls ..personally know a few, and most of them have given up on pakiland , moved overseas lock stock and barrel !.. as i see it they are more friendly to hindus and less likely to "bomb" , pun intended

Their goodwill to Hindus (and Sikhs and Buddhists too) and their (Hindu/Sikh/Buddhist) temples do not extend to those living in Afghanistan. So, let us not get too excited.
Gautam

I don't think there is any `goodwill' to Hindus/ Sikhs. Decades of brainwashing has ended that. There are only different degrees of hate.

[SBajwa]

He is a pathan ., they tend to think somewhat differently from other peacefuls ..personally know a few, and most of them have given up on pakiland , moved overseas lock stock and barrel !.. as i see it they are more friendly to hindus and less likely to "bomb" , pun intended

Their goodwill to Hindus (and Sikhs and Buddhists too) and their (Hindu/Sikh/Buddhist) temples do not extend to those living in Afghanistan. So, let us not get too excited.
Gautam

Both Pathans and Baluchs have reputation to be looters, thieves, bandits and overall bad personalities in Punjab.

[chetak]

This fellow (who questioned an Indian army chief bombastically and fashions himself as an arm chair jihadi) has now got cases registered against him (probably at the ishara of big danda Munir) for supporting PTI

He seems to be less of an arm chair Jihadi (I listen to his podcasts) since 9th May. Speaking English and living in US make him a Pak expert in some
circles.

wajahat khan was not always friendly

he is merely hedging his bets.

The isi can easily pay him a friendly visit anytime

[Vips]

Earlier too Wajahat had tried to get over-smart in a TV interview with Hameed Gul and was promptly shown his place both during the interview and after it by the ISI squad.

[chetak]

Earlier too Wajahat had tried to get over-smart in a TV interview with Hameed Gul and was promptly shown his place both during the interview and after it by the ISI squad.

the paki elites, just like the nepali and sinhala elites are fiercely anti India.

No one from these shitty countries takes a good look at the mess that they have created for themselves and yet they talk incessantly about India's big brother attitude.

Not a word on similar lines for the cheeni who are actually buggering them good and proper.

These local heroes quietly accept any and all shite that the cheenis send their way

[Vips]

That is because we are accommodative/tolerant to a fault and they get away with the needling.

We just do not have that ruthless streak which bitch-slaps them to remind them what their real standing and position is.

[g.sarkar]

https://www.dawn.com/news/1759838/footp ... jis-shrine
Footprints: The myth and meteorology of Baba Ji’s shrine
Muhammad Usman Mallick, June 15, 2023
A CYCLONE is heading towards the Sindh coast, and outside the revamped beige walls of the shrine to Karachi’s patron saint, the crowds are swelling.
“Baba Ji guards against all storms … he will come through for us again, don’t you worry. Just believe,” I overhear a devotee telling another as they are purchasing flowers to adorn the grave of Abdullah Shah Ghazi.
They are hardly the only ones. Devotees are arriving wholesale at this busy Clifton intersection, amid the din of two-stroke engines and blaring bus horns. Even though the Met Office predicted cloud cover and showers, it is a sunny day in the city by the sea, with just fleeting grey forms passing overhead from time to time.
“The sea used to challenge Baba … it once rose up to the level of his grave. But he pushed the water back,” relates Shah Nawaz, 50, who is charged with keeping the shrine clean.
He regales me with stories about miracles of the sufi saint, giving an insight into the beliefs held not just by diehard devotees, but a large chunk of the population of Sindh — especially Karachi. In fact, many city-dwellers have the staunch belief that if it hadn’t been for Baba Ji, Karachi would have drowned long ago.
Syed Abu Muhammad Abdullah Al-Ashtar, known widely as Abdullah Shah Ghazi, was believed to be a descendant of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). He was laid to rest in this place after he was martyred by his enemies in AD 768.
While there is little historical evidence to go on, the lore surrounding Baba Ji and his exploits is quite similar, no matter who you hear it from.
For example, we met Abdul Razzaq inside the shrine, who narrated to us the story he had been told about the saint and his powers.
There was a fishing village on this spot when Baba came here. One day, a group of fishermen went to the sea and were trapped by a cyclone. Some people came to Baba to ask for his help. He had a bowl, which he filled with water and dipped his finger in it, and was able to control the destructive phenomenon.
......
Gautam

[Deans]

The comments section of thefridaytimes.com is now open. Happy trolling.
Use a VPN and Muslim name when posting.

[g.sarkar]

https://www.thefridaytimes.com/2023/06/ ... asad-toor/
Former Spymaster Faiz Hameed Under House Arrest, Claims Asad Toor
The ex-DG ISI who was Imran Khan's top choice for the powerful post of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) is suspected to be the brains behind PTI's fatal miscalculation on May 9, according to journalist Asad Toor.
News Desk June 14, 2023
Lieutenant General (retired) Faiz Hameed, who served as director general of Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) agency during the Imran Khan government from June 2019 to November 2021, has reportedly been placed under house arrest a little over two weeks ago. The former spymaster is under renewed scrutiny for allegedly playing a central role in the incidents of violence and arson that unfolded across Pakistan on May 9.
Journalist Asad Ali Toor made this revelation in his latest vlog, where he reiterated his previous report from March 2023 in which he said Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed could potentially be arrested soon.
As he clarified his earlier scoop, Toor said that after his assertion about a decision being made to arrest Lt Gen (retd) Faiz, a news story came to the fore regarding a complaint being filed in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) pertaining to the retired Pakistan Army general’s corruption and accumulation of assets beyond means.
Toor says that former prime minister Imran Khan’s claims of not being responsible for the May 9 fiasco are not plausible. “It would be believable if the mob ‘went out of control’ just in Lahore, but mobs went out of control in Gujranwala cantonment, at Multan cantonment, at ISI offices in Faisalabad and Rawalpindi, even at the GHQ,” Toor postulates as he lists the major targets attacked on May 9, before asking “why did the mobs only target the cantonment areas? Why did PTI workers only target military installations?”
“It means that, at some level, Imran Khan had conveyed his directions that if anything happened to him, his followers should target military facilities in every city,” Toor purports. “It also means the mob was led to these places in all the different cities,” Toor says, adding that “the PTI also had some assurances from the inside, that if they attack military sites and corps commanders’ residences and the GHQ, it would cause so much chaos that the army would itself remove General Asim Munir – the incumbent Chief of Army Staff (COAS) who was abroad on an official trip at the time – in an internal coup”.
Toor then clarifies that, “there was definitely an assurance of that sort given to PTI from within the army, and according to sources, it was most likely Lt Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed who secured this assurance for them”.
According to media reports, a team “specially trained” by the former ISI chief was on the ground alongside PTI workers committing arson and vandalism in multiple locations across the country on May 9. While these arsonists and saboteurs are already in custody, no formal charges have been filed publicly against any senior Pakistan Army officer so far. It is speculated that close to 200 Pakistan Army personnel – commissioned officers and non-commissioned officials, both serving and retired – are currently facing court martial inquiries because of their suspected role in the May 9 riots.
......
Gautam
Deansji, You gave me the idea of visiting the Friday Times again. Thanks, I have not been there for ages.

[Manish_P]

The comments section of thefridaytimes.com is now open. Happy trolling.
Use a VPN and Muslim name when posting.

So this means that the coup is complete and the coup against the coup has been put down hain?

[Manish_P]

The last few day the paki media, and probably the paki politicians have looked to be almost hoping that Biparjoy hits pakistan.. the hope probably was another chance to beg for aid

Yawn - Sindh largely spared as cyclone hits India’s Gujarat coast

Howling gales and crashing waves pounded the coastline of Pakistan and India on Thursday as Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall in Gujarat, and was on course to reach Sindh’s Keti Bandar area early on Friday.

According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), weather was more intense on India’s coast, as it was directly hit by the storm.

“It was the system’s outer periphery that crossed over Keti Bandar. Pakistan’s coast, fortunately, remained largely safe. There weren’t heavy to extreme rainfall spells along Sindh’s coast as we were expecting,” a senior PMD official said. This development, he pointed out, indicated that the storm’s impact would further reduce on Friday (today), as the cyclone would gradually degrade into a low depression area, depending on the environment. The system, he said, would probably move towards India’s Rajasthan.

Climate Minister Sherry Rehman tweeted at around 9 pm on Thursday that the cyclone had reportedly hit Gujarat, but was still at a distance from Pakistan and “will likely begin counterclockwise landfall around or after midnight in our coastal areas”.

[Anujan]

Hopefully the TFTA army had the professionalism to empty the revolver of Faiz Hamid’s begum.

Otherwise locked in the same house with his begum’s loaded revolver, that too Faiz being a TFTA

https://twitter.com/mazdaki/status/1399 ... 57?lang=en

Mohammad Taqi
@mazdaki
Hamid Mir had only revealed what half of Pakistan and all of army brass knew that a top general was shot, reportedly in the ass, by his wife during a family feud over General Bajwa calls the fella’s extracurricular activities

[Deans]

The comments section of thefridaytimes.com is now open. Happy trolling.
Use a VPN and Muslim name when posting.

So this means that the coup is complete and the coup against the coup has been put down hain?

As long as you don't mention haram terms like IK, PTI or say anything against army.

[Dilbu]

Imran Khan's revolution is over. The only real innocent victim of all this tamasha was that peacock.
SMOKERS’ CORNER: THE RISE AND FALL OF IMRAN KHAN

The so-called ‘Imran Khan Project’ has been system­atically dismantled. The dismantling was done by the same state institution that had first launched it with great fanfare — the military establishment (ME).

A perception of a ‘void’ was created after the resignation of former military dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in 2008. It was a cosmetic void because the space vacated by the Musharraf regime was almost immediately filled by two established mainstream parties, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Yet, the ME launched what came to be known as the Imran Khan Project.

This project was initiated to fill the so-called void, especially when the ME became aware of a constituency that the ousted Musharraf had managed to create for himself. This constituency was largely made up of apolitical segments of the population. They had greatly enjoyed the fruits of Musharraf’s neoliberal economic manoeuvres. They also appreciated his projected image of being an ‘enlightened’ despot.

Musharraf was cognisant of the constituency that he had moulded. But it wasn’t a very politically active constituency. So, the ME’s media wing unleashed some gentlemen on private TV channels. These gentlemen began to rehash numerous debunked conspiracy theories first formulated during a rather paranoid period in the US and Europe in the first half of the 20th century. These were then spiked with the more contemporary conspiratorial balderdash.

The ratings were being generated by Musharraf’s constituency. It refused to engage with a politics dominated by the established parties. But with this constituency now stuffed with sufficient conspiratorial hogwash — which it gladly mistook as being ‘history’ and political knowledge — its potential to become a strong anti-PPP and anti-PML-N voting block began to be nurtured by the ME. All it now needed was a suitable candidate. Rather, a conduit.

The ‘sex-symbol’-turned-born-again-Muslim Imran Khan became that candidate. He had been networking with former military personnel since the days when he formed a ‘lobby’ with the former ISI chief Hamid Gul in 1994. Khan then formed his own party, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) in 1996 but, till 2011, it remained a tiny outfit with a minuscule vote bank.

However, Khan became a regular guest on TV talk shows. Here, his ‘idealistic’ rhetoric caught the attention of the aforementioned constituency that was reeling from Musharraf’s ouster and was unwilling to engage with mainstream political parties who it accused of dislodging a wonderful despot. In 2011, the ME was convinced that the constituency had begun to shift its support towards Khan.

The ME decided to test this hypothesis by aiding Khan in holding a public rally in Lahore where he was to announce the ‘unmasking’ of a mighty conspiracy against the Pakistan military forces by the PPP-led government. The claims of the ‘conspiracy’ soon fell away but, much to the delight of the ME, it managed to launch Khan as a ‘third force’.

It was during his 2014 sit-ins against the third PML-N regime that Khan was able to fully mould his image as an ‘incorruptible’ leader with a vision and will to turn Pakistan into an ‘Islamic welfare state’.

He did this by conjoining bits and pieces picked from the works of various Islamist ideologues. He then fused these with postmodernist critiques of modernity. He also adopted pop-culture-Sufism, and a macho rhetoric against ‘corruption’ and ‘fake liberals’. His rallies became grand performative events, with pop music and allusions postulating that Khan’s ‘mission’ had been ordained by the Almighty.

Men and women sang along and then often closed their eyes when Khan digressed to express his spiritual credentials. His rallies were therefore a cross between a pop concert and a gathering of a ‘spiritual’ cult. He had arrived. Not as a politician as such, but as a self-styled messianic figure on a divine mission to eliminate corruption, vanquish evil, and turn Pakistan into an economic and moral Utopia (and other such middle-class fantasies).

In 2018, with help from his friends in the ME, he managed to win a slight majority and stitch together a coalition government. It was an instant disaster. He wasn’t a politician. He was a handsome ‘spiritual’ leader of a constituency that identified with him entirely on an emotional level.

His numerous blunders finally saw the ME distancing itself from him, especially when reports of mass-scale corruption by his government began to leak out. After his ouster in 2022, he did not retreat to lick his wounds and reassess his strategy. Instead, the slow-motion train wreck that was his regime gained pace after his ouster, until crashing his party and his political career.

The May 9 riots by his followers pitched against his erstwhile sculptors, the ME, was his most damaging blunder. Before May 9, the emotive remnants of his charismatic authority that had also permeated within the military and the judiciary, was aiding him to avoid total disintegration. But after May 9, these too began to recede or were uprooted by a new ME and the government.

The party was finally over. He had danced his way up as a robust middle-aged man, but fell as a sad old man.

[sanman]

Imran Khan's revolution is over. The only real innocent victim of all this tamasha was that peacock.
SMOKERS’ CORNER: THE RISE AND FALL OF IMRAN KHAN

Domestically, his followers have been arrested and put down -- but what about among diaspora?

Surely you've seen the incidents where Pak govt officials abroad have faced jeering and vitriol from the Overseas Pakistanis, a number of whom seem to be smitten by cricket captain Khan and his superficial image appeal.

Will the diaspora Pakistanis just meekly bow their heads and pa(c)k it in?

Will there just be a prolonged uneasy coexistence, like the post Z.A. Bhutto years?

Either way, the diaspora pride is now hurt, and won't be shouting their 'Pakistan Zindabad' as much anymore.
Furthermore, the economic pain & discontent in Pakistan will continue, and I don't see how the ruling govt is going to quell that.

[Dilbu]

When political leaders and IK pasand jernails are getting threatened and their families are getting targeted what leverage do a few people sitting abroad have. Yes they can do some sit ins and dharnas and make some noise. But who cares?

[g.sarkar]

Both Pathans and Baluchs have reputation to be looters, thieves, bandits and overall bad personalities in Punjab.

Is the reputation of Punjabi Mussalman any better?
Gautam

[partha]

Slap on the face of all of joo who thought democracy is sliding in Pakistan in the wake of Army destroying a political party brick by brick. Democracy is actually thriving in Pakistan and how!

Intra party democracy!

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2422072/pm ... maryam-svp

In a significant development within the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has been elected as the party's president, while Maryam Nawaz has been chosen as the senior vice president.

The decision came during a meeting of the PML-N general council held in Islamabad on Friday, which also saw the election of several other officials to various positions.

The newly elected officials include Ahsan Iqbal as the general secretary, Marriyum Aurangzeb as the secretary of information, Ataullah Tarar as the deputy secretary, and Ishaq Dar as the secretary of finance and overseas affairs.

The elections were uncontested, indicating a show of unity within the party.

[Anujan]

Yawn headline (not making this up)

China returns $1 billion loan: SBP

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2422124/ch ... loan-sbp-1

Did China borrow $1 billion from Pakistan and then return it? Yes they did. China loaned $1 billion to Pakistan. Then borrowed Pakistan’s $1 billion as repayment. But then returned the $1 billion it borrowed from Pakistan.

Earlier on Friday, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had announced that Pakistan would receive a $1 billion Chinese commercial loan within 72 hours. Islamabad had repaid this loan in advance after reaching a new agreement with Beijing.

I heard somewhere that various countries of the world want to borrow $23 billion from Pakistan next year as loan repayment.

[Manish_P]

I knew it was going to happen one day... main stream Paki publications reaching the 'highs' of the deaf&dumb fora

Diyar o diyar

[g.sarkar]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-65831780
Why Imran Khan has disappeared from Pakistan's media
Published, 8 June
By Caroline Davies, BBC News, Islamabad
It was a surreal moment. On Tuesday night during his live TV show, Pakistani anchor Kashif Abbasi was talking about a legal petition filed by a lawyer against former prime minister Imran Khan.
Mr Abbasi says his name, then stops himself: "He filed an application under article six against Imran Khan… I apologise, against the chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf."
We tried to speak to Mr Abbasi, but he did not get back to us.
Over the last week, you will have struggled to hear Imran Khan's name or see his picture on Pakistan's media.
His arrest a month ago on corruption charges is the backdrop to this crackdown. When Mr Khan was taken from a court complex in Islamabad on 9 May, protests were sparked around the country. Some protested peacefully, but there was also violence.
Military buildings including the home of the most senior military commander in Lahore were attacked. The police arrested thousands of Khan supporters and the military have said they intend to try the alleged perpetrators of the attacks in military courts, something human rights groups including Amnesty International have said is against international law.
On 31 May, Pakistan's media regulator Pemra sent out a directive to Pakistan's news channels. After mentioning the events of 9 May, the directive reminds media channels that they must refrain from providing airtime to individuals who propagate hate speech.
There is no mention of Imran Khan's name in the directive, but we have spoken to several individuals at different TV stations who told us that the message had been conveyed in clear terms to their channels.
Imran Khan's name should not be mentioned, his picture not shown, his voice not heard, even a mention on the channels' ticker tapes was not allowed, they told us. If there was any need to mention him, Mr Khan should only be referred to by his title, the chairman of his party, the PTI.
Two sources told the BBC that they had spoken directly to the owners of the TV channels they work for. They say the owners had been called into a meeting with senior officials from the military and intelligence services who told the channels in clear terms what was expected.
"They were told you will not run any news that bears his name and if you do you will be responsible," says one source who works in Pakistan TV. All contributors from the media spoke to us on condition of anonymity.
......
Gautam
Also see:
It seems Dimran has been told that he must leave Pakistan by IED, and go to UAE.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aq-WNYl ... ahOfficial
Leave Pakistan and go to UAE, Message for Imran Khan. Imran Khan's Emergency Address
Aaliya Shah

[rajkumar]

[sanjaykumar]

Just wondering, in India do they have concepts of phrasing, of clauses and pauses?

Or is language spoken like Sanskrit was written on palm leaves? In an unbroken sequence.

[Vayutuvan]

@sanjaykumar ji, you wanted to post this in some other thread? or there is some satire which I am missing "big"ly?