Why wouldn’t the rumour mill go active after PML-N’s Khwaja brothers sat down with Chaudhary Pervaiz Elahi for a good three hours the other day? And who wouldn’t expect popular media to pick up the matter and sprinkle as much political intrigue on it as possible? In the age of Breaking News, this stuff is pure gold, and understandably so. Especially because of the backdrop. Talk of discontent and forward blocks within PTI, especially the Punjab government, was already doing the rounds. Then the FIA report on the sugar and wheat crises, and what is likely to come out with the complete forensic analysis on April 25, added yet more fuel to the fire.
Now pundits expect a scramble in Punjab as the most natural consequence of the falling-out between Imran Khan and Jahangir Tareen. No doubt Tareen was the backbone, most people say also the ATM, of the party since well before its election victory and his planes, helicopters and influence played perhaps the biggest part in stitching together the Punjab government. And now that he’s being made an example of – he says very wrongly – he is naturally expected to cash in some of his chips and pay the party back in kind. At least the opposition would be hoping so. That is, after all, the law of nature; it is definitely the law of politics.
Pervaiz Elahi is central to all of this, of course, since his son Moonis Elahi is also mentioned in the report that led to the unceremonious downfall of Jahangir Tareen. And if Imran is dead set on taking action against Tareen, PML-Q would have factored in how much leniency he’s likely to show Moonis Elahi. So the Khwajas meeting Elahi was just everybody letting actions speak louder than words. PML-N is keen for its narrative of vicious political victimisation to build momentum. What else could it be except naked victimisation, they ask, since NAB could produce no evidence against PML-N leaders despite such long incarcerations? Elahi, for his part, could be showing that he’s not completely without options either. And squeezing his family could well jolt the Punjab setup. Also, this was not the usual backdoor type of meeting. They did it in the light of day, in open sight of TV cameras. And while formally they said they only met to discuss the need for unity in the face of the coronavirus, etc, neither side has made any attempt to put a lid on all the speculation they have triggered. The ball, now, is in PTI’s court. *