Imran Khan sows seeds of distrust in Pakistan Army to support his 'coup'

With the aim to retain his power, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has worked divisions in the key institutional leadership like Army to support his "coup".

The plan also includes ensuring support from the mainstream media as well as his troll army.

Making the situation unpredictable and fearful is the possible division within the powerful army, with one side, led by former ISI chief, Lt. General Faiz Hameed, who is currently Corps Commander, Peshawar.

Hameed is said to be close to Imran Khan and has reportedly been plotting against his chief, General Javed Bajwa. In fact, it was Hameed who was instrumental in bringing Imran Khan to Islamabad and had supported his protege through thick and thin.

It is said that Lt. General Hameed and other senior commanders miffed at Bajwa for pulling the rug under Imran Khan were waiting in the wing to help the premier escape guillotine.

Bajwa, deeply suspicious of how some of his commanders would act in the next few days, has been coordinating with key commanders like the ISI chief, Rawalpindi Corps Commander, Director General of Military Operations and Brigade Commander, 111 Brigade.

Imran Khan has lost no time in sowing seeds of distrust in the army through calculated media leaks about his meeting with the Army chief and other senior army commanders. The army leadership, according to select media leaks, gave Imran Khan three options.

But the army officially clarified that it was the Prime Minister who sought a meeting with the Army chief as well as the ISI DG. Khan wanted the army to help him to thwart the imminent ouster.

The growing suspicion between the Prime Minister and the Army came out in open on April 2 when General Bajwa spoke against Russia for the Ukraine war. This was a desperate attempt to thwart Imran Khan's ploy to get closer to Moscow, and please China, while accusing the US of a conspiracy to throw him out.

Pakistan National Assembly Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri on Sunday dismissed the no-trust motion against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, terming it a contradiction of Article 5 of the country's Constitution. Moreover, Pakistan President Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly on the proposal of Imran Khan.

Pakistan media has criticised the dissolution of the National Assembly in the country, saying that whatever happened on Sunday violated all rules governing proceedings in the House, particularly those dealing with the motion of no-confidence.

In an editorial published on Monday, the Dawn newspaper said that Imran Khan could have played the political game like a true sportsperson and still emerged stronger from the loss given the sharp narrative he had spun leading up to the vote.

"Instead, he chose to thrust the country into a constitutional crisis. The president, too, failed to act with wisdom: instead of looking into the constitutionality of the entire process, he acted as an Imran Khan loyalist and sullied his office with his partisan decision," the Dawn editorial said.

The Pakistani newspaper argued that with the parliamentary process pulverised on the orders of a leader who continues to hold it in deep contempt, Pakistan has been thrown into the dark abyss of a constitutional crisis.

( With inputs from ANI )