Information Minister Atta Tarar intends to play with fire as his recent presser announced a ban on PTI is in the offing on top of treason proceedings against its mainstream leaders. This decision, especially when taken on the heels of a historic relief granted by the Supreme Court in the case of reserved seats for women and religious minorities, has prompted many to assail the sitting government for alleged desperation to prevent the PTI from becoming the single largest party in the national assembly. Although no guideline exists to determine the actual impact of the said ban on PTI’s share in the legislature, playing one’s cards right and at the right time. It does not befit a political power to call for the suppression of another political power in a functional democracy. No qualms about that. These hare-brained schemes have failed in the past and would never prove to work out in any other way. But while the method and the reactive timing may be questionable, it would be just as folly to make light of the state’s reservations against the party, its foreign funding and a series of misactions that saw its supporters targetting crucial institutions and installations on repeated occasions. Since it would be incredibly difficult to prove Section 213 of the Election Act, the case is expected to drag on for years, and ergo, the government’s attempt appears to be nothing more than a short-term strategy to contain Imran Khan. Instead of opting for judicial shortcuts, PML(N) would have been better off collaborating with the opposition under the new, changed dynamics and letting their voters see the reality of those who continue to harp on about their commitment to the masses. Nevertheless, all this could have been greatly avoided had the apex court not chosen to move beyond the usual limitations of any appeal in the case of the reserved seat, spelling utter chaos for the entire country. A much simpler solution could have been to grant the actual appellant SIC these seats, whose representatives could later merge into whichsoever party (even PTI, which stood recognised as a political player). Sadly, as a country, we love to walk into the same wall again and again. *