In Pakistan, democracy has often served as a reassuring narrative used to placate the populace, while the “men in uniform" govern either overtly or from behind the scenes. Civilian administrations, regardless of their popularity, are allowed to function only as long as they do not threaten the vested interests of the military establishment. When they cross that line, they are removed via a well-established mechanism in which the judiciary is conveniently employed to implement the establishment’s agenda.

No individual embodies this complex interplay of power more than Imran Khan, whose political ascent was not in defiance of the military’s covert backing but rather a result of it. Now, like his predecessor Nawaz Sharif, he finds himself deconstructed, delegitimised, and detained.

Khan’s political trajectory is steeped in profound irony. It required over twenty years, a massive cult following rooted in his cricketing fame following the 1992 World Cup triumph, and a populist discourse centred on reform, for him to attain Pakistan’s premiership in 2018. However, this ascent was also contingent upon the endorsement of the very institution he now vehemently criticises—the Pakistan Army. For decades, the military establishment has acted as the ultimate power broker in Pakistani politics, assembling governments from a cadre of “electables", pejoratively labelled “lotas", and maintaining control through a blend of patronage, coercion, and calculated instability.

Once acclaimed by many as the military’s favoured candidate, Khan’s fall from favour occurred more swiftly than most had anticipated. His efforts to re-establish civilian authority and pursue an autonomous path—be it in foreign policy, intelligence postings, or internal military matters—proved intolerable for Pakistan’s generals, who are unaccustomed even to the semblance of accountability. Consequently, what ensued was not simply a political rift, but a deliberate and relentless campaign of obliteration.

Since his removal from office in 2022, Khan has faced a slew of legal proceedings—an evident case of lawfare in which Pakistani courts, from the lowest levels to the Supreme Court,........

© News18