HE opposition alliance TTAP has hinted at another anti-government drive. Its recent talks with the JUI-F on parliamentary coordination indicate that the party’s chief Maulana Fazlur Rahman is poised to lead the campaign. All this raises obvious questions: is the opposition seriously planning an anti-government drive? Is it actually convinced that such a movement at this time can remove the government? Will the pragmatic JUI-F chief join such an effort? At least for now, the answer may disappoint the opposition’s supporters. The PTI is locked in a protracted battle with the government, while much of its top leadership remains behind bars. It has twice attempted to mobilise public support for a mass movement and rally people around its political objectives since the controversial February 2024 elections, but both attempts failed. It is obvious that people, particularly in Punjab and Sindh, are not ready to join any such movement at this time. Even in KP, where the PTI had been in power since 2013, the party has failed to mobilise the public. The Jamaat-i-Islami’s drive against high petrol prices similarly failed to bring people out onto the streets.
Though the JUI-F has staunch supporters on the streets who are ready to answer their party’s call, its leader has never been one to take needless risks. His azadi march against the PTI government brought thousands of supporters to Islamabad, but failed to dislodge the Imran Khan administration. The sit-in was eventually called off without achieving its objective. The federal government has imposed emergency measures and governor’s rule in KP, claiming they were necessary for security and administrative reasons. The opposition sees these moves as an assault on provincial autonomy. Maulana Fazlur Rahman is actively opposing the move. The government’s response to his criticism has fuelled fears that the JUI-F could face the same crackdown as the PTI. Those concerns are not difficult to understand. The recent actions of the Balochistan government against JUI-F Senator Kamran Murtaza on a questionable citizenship claim reinforce these fears. Yet expectations of the maulana leading another street confrontation with the government anytime soon are likely to remain wishful thinking. Nevertheless, this consensus of politicians of different persuasions reflects a growing frustration with the government’s high-handed actions.
The lawyers’ emergence in this arena is particularly significant. The All Pakistan Lawyers Action Committee in Quetta has vowed to support Senator Murtaza and resist any attempt to undermine constitutional supremacy. There are also reports of raids on lawyers’ homes. Although the prospects of a new anti-government movement remain remote, public discontent should not be ignored. Small, isolated protests and expressions of dissent can gradually gather momentum and develop into a much larger movement.