Pakistan: English Dailies Question Need for Imran Khan's Arrest, Call it 'Provocation'

New Delhi: The leading English newspapers in Pakistan in their editorials on Wednesday morning have unsurprisingly commented on the events of the previous day – former Prime Minister Khan's arrest and the large-scale protests by his supporters.

Dawn, in its editorial, stated that the arrest means "any hopes of a negotiated breakthrough in the ongoing political stalemate can be put to rest". The newspaper also suggested that the reason's for Khan's arrest – at this specific time – do not seem to match with what the government is claiming. "The fact that it was the Punjab Rangers and not the Islamabad Police which were sent in to nab him from the Islamabad High Court’s premises seems to support the latter thesis."

What the arrest has done, according to Dawn, is exacerbated the problem instead of solving it. "...removing Mr Khan from the picture solves nothing. Instead, as the protests yesterday showed, arresting him may have deeply fractured the historic compact between the people and the country’s armed forces.... The provocation of Mr Khan’s arrest has only led the government and establishment deeper into controversy and will engender even greater public distrust in their policies. This is the last thing the country needs, teetering as it is on the verge of an all-out default."

The Nation's editorial termed Khan's arrest "shocking", adding, "While the arrest can be argued to be legal, the manner in which it was carried out and the resulting unrest throughout the country is extremely concerning."

All political leaders in the country, including those in power and Khan himself, do not seem to be focusing on rebuilding the nation and solving the poly-crises, the newspaper stated. "Political leaders are prioritising short-term interests over those of the nation, and that is applicable across the board. As far as Mr Khan is concerned, his routine tirades are only increasing polarisation across the country and are bringing disrepute to the country’s institutions at a time when you need all hands on deck."

The News has remarked that even if the case against Khan may well be made out, "saner minds wonder if the hamfisted way he was arrested will end up making his case or the government’s".

"Observers fear that there may be consequences in Tuesday’s happenings for both the PTI and Pakistan’s democratic setup in the long term. Imran Khan is a popular leader but this is not the first time in Pakistan’s history that a popular leader has been arrested. Some would say what the PTI does next could well determine Pakistan’s politics. But more astute students of history may say that in the real Pakistan, the game may now be out of political hands," the newspaper continued.

Pakistan Today has said that Khan arrest may, in fact, have been "inevitable", given his recent "outburst against the major general heading the ISI’s counter-terrorism department".

While Khan will fight his arrest tooth-and-nail, the newspaper comments, the arrest has launched "a sequence of events...whose end cannot be predicted".

The Express Tribune has come out strongly against the arrest, calling it "unwarranted" and "at a wrong time". Given the severe economic crisis the country is witnessing, the government should not have focused on a "political checkmate" but tried to "look at the broader picture of coexistence", the newspaper stated.

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