The tide appears to be settling after all. On one hand, mainstream parties are increasingly moving away from the edge of the cliff under the guise of protecting democracy. Days after Khawaja Saad Rafique had taken to social media to invite PPP to form a government with the support of PTI-backed candidates, thundering that it was not just his party’s responsibility to maintain order in the house, streets are rife with speculations about his supreme leader conducting meetings with bureaucrats. Another bigwig in the party, Khawaja Asif, believes a multi-party alliance would take the driving seat in the centre, after all. On the other hand, PTI’s top brass should be credited for uniting two ferocious sectarian outfits under the independent umbrella as they decide to join hands with the Sunni Ittehad Council, but with the “blessing” of Majlis e Wahdatul Muslimeen. While a cursory look at both sides busy in efforts to lay hands on power gives a whiff of greater turmoil, these political battles, which would, in turn, give political solutions, alone carry the weight to push the country towards stability. No matter who gets to sit on the treasury benches, the ruling elite would have to realise that Pakistan cannot stay in the election mode forever. The glaring reality check is becoming increasingly hard to deny. Despite the reassurances it received and a generally overconfident aura it wore, PML(N)’s failure to win a sweeping majority is here to stay. The sooner it makes peace with the upcoming hung parliament, the better it will be for the entire system. The same logic applies to Imran Khan, who needs the assistance of allies to cross the magic number of 134 in the national assembly. Even if the collaborations do not work. no good would come out of empty opposition benches. It can only be hoped that now that the session of an elected legislature is called, a proactive opposition is ready to force the executive to play its part well. We’ve spent a long, long time on our way to the correct mark. Unless the starting gun is fired, the economy and the nation can only dream about taking part in the actual race.*