The not so reluctant fundamentalist
Zeeshan Salahuddin 27 Jun 2014
Qadri has promised a revolution, but his motives and track record are
questionable
The
last time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif redirected a flight, it did not end well
for him. The then Chief of the Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf took power
in a bloodless coup, jailed, then exiled Nawaz Sharif, and ruled for the next
nine years. But then again, perhaps the joke is on Musharraf, for he is now
under investigation in several cases, at least two of which are murder trials,
banned from leaving the country, and a political failure, whereas Nawaz Sharif
has ascended back to the premiership for a record third time in the country’s
history.
Diverting
the plane, officially for security concerns, was the latest in a list of
heavy-handed tactics used by the government to nip firebrand Qadri’s
religio-political revolution in the bud. A few days prior, in Lahore, in one of
the worst examples of police brutality, at least eight supports of Qadri’s
Pakistan Awami Tehrik (PAT) were killed in clashes near Qadri’s residence. The
“peaceful revolution” did not kick off to a very appropriate start. Even with dozens
injured, and video evidence of over the top police cruelty, the political blame
game continued unabated, with politicians spinning the tragedy into yarns of
opportunity. A case was lodged against the protestors by the police. The
provincial law minister was sacked.
The stage is set for a major confrontation
Qadri
vowed holy vengeance against the Sharif brothers. On Monday, nearly 1,500 Qadri
supporters, armed with sticks and stones, surrounded the airport in
anticipation of Qadri’s arrival. This time, their sticks and stones broke a lot
of bones, with serious injuries reported by at least 70 police officers at the
scene. The plane was diverted back to Lahore amid clashes. Qadri refused to
disembark, demanding protection from the army, creating a standoff for five
hours at the airport. He finally gave in, assuaged by Punjab provincial
governor Muhammad Sarwar and Pakistan Muslim League (Q)’s Chaudhary Pervaiz
Elahi. Federal Information Minister Pervez Rashid called the event a “hijacking
for political aims”. Qadri visited the injured from Lahore a week prior.
Emirates Air banned Qadri for life.
This
is not the first time Qadri has attempted to bring revolution to the streets of
Pakistan. In January 2013, four months shy of the elections that would see the
lion of Punjab roar, and an arrow miss its mark, Qadri staged a massive sit-in
on the main artery in the federal capital of Islamabad. By his own estimations,
the crowd was four million strong, but crowd counting methods put that number
at a fraction of this bloated figure. Regardless of the actual numbers, the
sheer amount of bodies packed into Jinnah Avenue was a staggering sight.
The
demands then were the embryonic beginnings of the objectives now. Qadri wanted
electoral reforms, and an early dissolution of the PPP-led center. This time,
he wants a people’s revolution to create an Islamic system of government. “We
want a system based on the constitution and democratic principles that are
practiced in other countries,” he said in a statement last Friday.
For
many, Tahirul Qadri’s sudden emergence as a political force was unprecedented
and unanticipated. The 63-year old founding leader of Minhaj-ul-Quran, an peace
advocating organization with branches in over 90 countries, is a self-professed
anti-Taliban establishment supporter. In fact, some political pundits viewed
his abrupt surfacing as an attempt by certain sections of the establishment to
regain power. This view is further supported because he has resurfaced when
tensions between the civilian government and the powerful military leadership
were at an all time high, and compounded by a long-awaited military operation
launched against the Taliban on June 15, 2014, which has already resulted in
414,429 internally displaced people (IDPs).
This is not the first time Qadri has attempted to bring a revolution
Federal
Information Minister’s Pervez Rashid painted the Taliban, Qadri and Imran Khan
as cohorts. While there may be little truth to this allegation, as Qadri left
the country in 2006 due to death threats from extremist outfits that he
vehemently spoke against, it may reflect how the government feels. They are
besieged by the Taliban, and a potential backlash, both in terms of
retaliation, and the massive influx of refugees from the affected areas. They are
heavy-handedly dealing with Qadri and his army of devotees, resulting in one
political debacle after another. They are also battling coinciding protests
from Imran Khan, who continues to claim election fraud. By all accounts, this
government is bogged in an ever-deepening political quagmire, and the vultures
are circling.
Whether
Qadri manages to deliver on his promise and bring revolution remains to be
seen. For now, the stage is set for a major confrontation. “I will give a
sudden call”, he said to his followers at his residence on Monday, promising a
date for the pending revolution. The not-so-reluctant fundamentalist ended the
evening with an ominous foretelling. “The rulers will try to run away, but I
won’t let the looters run away.”
The author is a journalist
and a development professional, and holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in
strategic communications from Ithaca College, NY, USA. He can be reached via
zeeshan[dot]salahuddin[at]gmail.com and tweets @zeesalahuddin
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