It is becoming increasingly unclear to decipher what the government actually wants the people to believe. By grilling PTI chairman Imran Khan over the coals for the said designs to let a group of incensed followers burn down the fort, it gives the impression of a state visibly furious at the trampling of prized installations. But, by standing in the corner of the PDM chief as he seems adamant on continuing the protest demonstration, its policies reek of political narrative-building. How are scenes of JUI-F workers trampling the gate to the Red Zone different from the shocking visuals of loot and riot the coalition leaders are pressing on as a “dark chapter” in the history of Pakistan? One can only wonder whether the refusal to listen to law enforcement agencies’ request for peace and restraint is a different tale than what went down between protestors and the police personnel in Lahore Cantonment last week. The lines become increasingly blurred in consideration of Section 144 imposed by the government itself. If rage and rioting have been heralded as the last blow to fragile democracy hanging by the thread, why are seasoned politicians using displays of force to send the message across? Heated rhetoric and hollow sloganeering may give rise to a few more unthinkable moments but it is far too easier to hop aboard the cancelling bandwagon to present a concrete blue map. Maulana Fazlur Rehman looking the constitution in the eye to thunder his decisions mattered more than the judicial independence was enough reason for any executive to sort out its priorities. That violence can never yield lasting results other than damaging the integrity of the perpetrators should prevail as an overarching principle, not a notion only applicable at whim. There’s no telling what tomorrow would bring in terms of politics but unless some miracle restores sanity among the ruling elite, whatsoever is going down on the streets of the country can only make sense as a bizarre example of government pitted against government. *