Let’s take 2 steps back here and look at it from a larger perspective.
Imran Khan is seeing this as a long term struggle. He is far too experienced to understand this. What does this mean?
1. Going all out in the long march with protestors already in Islamabad and reinforcements coming in, this would have meant closure. What next? Imran Khan would have no room to maneuver and negotiate. You think a 200k protestors and a sizeable militia can take the fight against police/rangers/military. The violence would have ended where leaders, others would have been jailed and narrative of corrupt and Mir Jaffars ruling Pakistan completely wiped off.
2. Imran Khan has a few cards up his sleeves and that’s what keeping the enemies on their heels. The threat to come back after 6 days, the video, the contents of the letter in full, petitioning the courts. Some are more impactful than others but it shows the ladder of escalation, he is willing to take.
3. The establishment is very much disturbed. Never in their lifetime have they been at the wrong side of history (except ‘71 defeat). Their pulse ratings are at its lowest and they are worried. Imran Khan very well knows establishment is no way in dictating terms when it comes to negotiating. Down the line the moment of negotiations will come. Establishment wants contact now and a closure to undo their grand miscalculation. Imran Khan is not giving them that any time soon.
This is a long drawn out war, where few battles will be lost and few will be won. The momentum is with Khan. Majority have bought his narrative that the PDM (refers to them directly) and Establishment (refers to them indirectly) are not only corrupt but traitors.
In that broader perspective, PTI has the upper hand and will continue to build on it.
Imran Khan is seeing this as a long term struggle. He is far too experienced to understand this. What does this mean?
1. Going all out in the long march with protestors already in Islamabad and reinforcements coming in, this would have meant closure. What next? Imran Khan would have no room to maneuver and negotiate. You think a 200k protestors and a sizeable militia can take the fight against police/rangers/military. The violence would have ended where leaders, others would have been jailed and narrative of corrupt and Mir Jaffars ruling Pakistan completely wiped off.
2. Imran Khan has a few cards up his sleeves and that’s what keeping the enemies on their heels. The threat to come back after 6 days, the video, the contents of the letter in full, petitioning the courts. Some are more impactful than others but it shows the ladder of escalation, he is willing to take.
3. The establishment is very much disturbed. Never in their lifetime have they been at the wrong side of history (except ‘71 defeat). Their pulse ratings are at its lowest and they are worried. Imran Khan very well knows establishment is no way in dictating terms when it comes to negotiating. Down the line the moment of negotiations will come. Establishment wants contact now and a closure to undo their grand miscalculation. Imran Khan is not giving them that any time soon.
This is a long drawn out war, where few battles will be lost and few will be won. The momentum is with Khan. Majority have bought his narrative that the PDM (refers to them directly) and Establishment (refers to them indirectly) are not only corrupt but traitors.
In that broader perspective, PTI has the upper hand and will continue to build on it.