HERE we go again. Barely five months before the next general elections, the opposition parties insist on marching to the beat of a different drummer.

One would have thought that by now, they would be gearing up for a fiercely contested battle at the hustings, talking about their programmes, and discussing the allocation of tickets. However, judging from the fragmented rally in the centre of Lahore on Wednesday, our vanguard of democracy would much rather topple an elected government through agitation than by winning the next elections.

But the empty chairs at Charing Cross, Lahore`s hub and the venue of the rally, told their own story. Although there were several parties represented at the event, you wouldn`t have guessed it from the attendance. During the PPP leader`s speech, when a supporter tried to raise a pro-Zardari slogan, the lack of response denated it like a punctured balloon.

However, Zardari had no skin in the game as he was just along for the ride. It must be a very long time since a PPP leader spoke before a largish crowd in Lahore. Virtually erased from Punjab`s political map, the PPP now relies on symbolic gestures to keep the flag flying. The fact that the PPP candidate in Lahore`s recent NA-120 constituency byelection won just 1,414 votes should concentrate minds in the party.

Another major player without a stake in the game is Dr Tahirul Qadri, a cleric who flies to Pakistan from Canada once a year to stir the pot. While he attracts crowds with his histrionics, his loosely structured Pakistan Awami Tehreek is far from being an electoral force.

But Imran Khan`s PTI certainly is. And yet, despite his personal popularity, Khan seems uncertain of his chances in the next elections. His party has been beaten by the ruling PML-N in several crucial by-elections. To do better, he needs to attract lots of Nawaz Sharif supporters, but by bringing the centre of Lahore to a grinding halt for almost two days, he hasn`t done his party any favours.

Khan has also cursed parliament for being ineffective. He would have sounded more convincing had his attendance record been better: according to a report published ayear ago,he had been presentfor only six per cent of National Assembly sessions held until then.

Nawaz Sharif, another chronic absentee, did slightly better by turning up for 16pc of the sessions. Clearly, both party leaders view assemblies as platforms for wielding power, but not as institutions worthy of their time or respect.

Had Qadri been serious about seeking jus-tice for 14 of his supporters shot dead by the police in Lahore`s Model Town over three years ago, he would have appeared before the court where he had lodged a complaint.

Clearly, it is far more exciting to demand justice at Charing Cross than undergoing cross-examination in a courtroom. Also, his court appearances probably clashed with his engagements in Canada. Justice Baqar Najafi`s report on the Model Town tragedy, while holding the Punjab government and police responsible, has named no official for ordering the firing. Clearly, there have been grave failures up and down the chain of command, but to think that forcing the resignations of Punjab chief minister Shahbaz Sharif and Law Minister Rana Sanaullah will bring closure and justice, Qadri & Co must be living in a parallel universe.

The truth is that invoking the Model Town killings, and conflating them with little Zainab`s gruesome rape and murder in Kasur, is a cynical ploy to keep the pressureon the Sharifs. And while I hold no brief for them, the ongoing campaign to destabilise the government at any cost is damaging a system that has already been battered by the military establishment, the judiciary and the media.

Politics and opportunism walk hand inhand all over the world. The opposition often demands resignations of sitting ministers, but doesn`t insist on the dissolution of assemblies. It is this contempt of democratic institutions, combined with relentless street agitation, that has rendered day-to-day government virtually impossible.

Addressing an infantry unit of the Red Army, Lenin advised the soldiers thus: `When charging with the bayonet, if you meet mush, push. But if you meet steel, withdraw.` Imran Khan`s fired-up supporters have met nothing but mush, and have been constantly pushing. Other groups and parties, observing the PML-N`s craven behaviour, have also kicked the ruling party while it`s down.

And yet, it would appear that contrary to the expectations of his rivals as well as our political engineers Nawaz Sharif`s support has not crumbled. The reality is that love him or hate him, Shahbaz Sharif has done much to improve things in large parts of Punjab.

No wonder Imran Khan is trying so hard to topple the PML-N before the elections.• irfan.husain@gmail.com