Although Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came first in the 8 February parliamentary elections, the government, supported by a coalition of eight parties, wants to ban it. The final decision, however, is up to the Supreme Court, which has so far sided with the former prime minister, ordering his release. In the meantime, Islamabad has managed to obtain a new loan to avoid financial bankruptcy.

Islamabad (AsiaNews/Agencies) – The Government of Pakistan plans to ban Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party that ruled the country from 2018 to 2022 under then Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has been in prison for the past year.

Islamabad also intends to try the party's leaders, including Khan, under Article 6 of the constitution governing high treason, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said.

It is no coincidence that the news was released yesterday. On Friday the Supreme Court overturned a decision of the Electoral Commission to exclude PTI candidates from seats reserved for women and minorities.

On the same day, Imran Khan and his third wife were acquitted of illegal marriage. But the party leader is still in prison on new charges, including high treason.

All previous convictions imposed on Khan have been overturned or suspended.

Earlier this month a UN panel of experts found that Imran Khan's detention “had no legal basis and appears to have been intended to disqualify him from running for political office".

This reflects a tug-of-war between the government and the judiciary that began after the parliamentary elections of 8 February.

Despite being forced to run its candidates as independents, the PTI won a landslide victory. However, backed by the country’s military, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Pakistan Muslim League (PML) were able to scrape together an eight-party coalition, and hold onto power.

Minister Tarar said that the government will call for a ban on the PTI for receiving funding from abroad.

But the 9 May 2023 riots by party supporters (who took to the streets to protects against Khan's arrest and targeted some government buildings and military bases) were also cited as a reason to ban the party.

“We are going to impose a ban on PTI and we believe that Article 17 of the Constitution gives the government the right to ban political parties, and this matter will be referred to the Supreme Court,” Tarar added.

Under Article 17, a party can be dissolved if it undermines the integrity or sovereignty of Pakistan, but the final decision rests with the court.

Similarly, the government will file a petition against Imran Khan, former Pakistani President Arif Alvi, and the former speaker of the House, Qasim Suri, all members of the PTI, for dissolving parliament in April 2022 despite the motion of no confidence filed against Khan in parliament that led to his ouster from power.

The PTI expressed their opposition to the government’s decisions. “No patriot can think of banning the largest and most popular party of the country, as doing so would be tantamount to uprooting the foundations of Pakistan and sending the country towards civil war,” the party said in a post on social media platform X.

Legal experts note that any decision will now have to be referred to the Supreme Court, which has sided with the former prime minister so far, so it is hard to predict the turn of events.

In the meantime, Pakistan has secured a US$ 7 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the next three years.

"The program aims to capitalize on the hard-won macroeconomic stability achieved over the past year by furthering efforts to strengthen public finances, reduce inflation, rebuild external buffers and remove economic distortions to spur private sector-led growth," said Nathan Porter, IMF's mission chief to Pakistan.

Despite the political turmoil, the government last month presented its first budget to parliament, promising increase in civil servants' salaries by up to 25 per cent and setting an ambitious tax target, 13 trillion rupees (US$ 44 billion), 40 per cent more than in current fiscal year, the finance minister explained.

The government also plans to expand the tax base by including more taxpayers. Out of a population of 235 million, in fact, only five million Pakistanis pay taxes.

Last year, Pakistan came close to financial default due to non-payment on his foreign debt.

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• imran khan
• acquittal
• high treason
• pakistan tehreek-e-insaf
• pti
• ban
• budget
• international monetary fund
• imf
• loan
• foreign debt
• shehbaz sharif
• his pakistan muslim league
• pml