| 2022–2026 Pakistan political unrest | |||
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| Date | 24 March 2022 - 8 February 2026 | ||
| Location | Pakistan (Countrywide) | ||
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The2022–2026 Pakistan political unrest is a series of political crises after the ousting of formerprime ministerImran Khan through ano-confidence motion at 12 p.m., 10 April 2022.[14] The crises began in 2022 when the opposition joined hands and submitted a no-confidence motion againstImran Khan's government in theNational Assembly. Imran Khan urged themilitary establishment to bring establishment controlled parties like PML-Q or PPP & MQM back into alliance[15] and play its role to save his government and not let rival politicians take over,[16] but the establishment supported opposition.[17]
After his ouster, month later Khan led the2022 Azadi march, and later theHaqeeqi Azadi march in October to protest the new government and call forearly elections in the country. In 2023, the Khan-ledPTI dissolved two of its provincial assemblies[18][19] (Punjab andKP), to attempt to cause early elections in 60% of the country due on 30 April 2023[20] and 28 May 2023,[21] respectively. Following the end of his premiership, Khan has seen his popularity increase, with aGallup survey declaring Imran Khan as the most popular current political leader in Pakistan, with 61% of Pakistanis having a positive opinion about him, followed by 36% for thePML-N'sNawaz Sharif and former foreign ministerBilawal Bhutto Zardari, respectively.[22] At the same time, inflation continued to rise in goods and services, reaching a multi-decade high of 35.4 percent, driven by a weaker rupee, COVID-19 related supply-chain disruptions, high production costs for farmers, and global fuel price hikes,causing economic strain.[23]
Imran Khan was arrested by the police fromIslamabad High Court (IHC) on 9 May 2023, but was later released bySupreme Court two days later. Khan's arrest led to anationwide protest by his supporters. On May 9, aseries of riots and violent demonstrations directly occurred against military and government instillations. Social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook and others were blocked in the country.[24] On 5 August 2023, Imran Khan was again arrested on the charges ofselling state gifts and was sentenced to three years jail and five years of disqualification by the trial court Judge. On 29 August 2023, the IHC suspended Imran Khan's sentence, but Khan has since then been convicted in other cases.
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General election were held in Pakistan on Wednesday, 25 July 2018 to elect the members of15thNational Assembly and the fourProvincial Assemblies. The three major partiesPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led byImran Khan, thePakistan Muslim League led byShehbaz Sharif and thePakistan Peoples Party led byBilawal Bhutto.
PTI won the most seats in the National Assembly but fell short of a majority; the party subsequently formeda coalition government with several smaller parties.[25]
Following the elections, six major parties including PML-N claimed there had been large-scale vote rigging and administrative malpractices.Imran Khan, chairman of the PTI, proceeded to form a coalition government, announcinghis cabinet shortly after the elections.
Claims of electoral malpractice in the 2018 elections are still hotly debated. Numerous neutral observers have issued statements on the credibility of the result, with a top electoral watchdog,Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN), saying that the 2018 general elections in Pakistan had been "more transparent in some aspects" than the previous polls.[26][27] The EU Election Observation Mission to Pakistan maintained, however, that a "level playing field" was not afforded to all parties and that the process was not "as good as that of 2013".[28]
The PDM is political movement founded in September 2020, which is based on allegations of rigging in the2018 Pakistani general election, whichImran Khan'sPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf won. Imran Khan's government, however, maintained that the movement was motivated by a series of corruption cases against the leaders of the political parties that had were previously in power, namely thePakistan Muslim League (PMLN) and thePakistan People's Party (PPP).[29]
The tensions between Khan and the army arose in 2021, when Khan tried to appoint his own choice as the new ISI chief. The army resisted this move, and Khan eventually backed down.[30] However, the tensions continued, and in April 2022, Khan was ousted from power in a no-confidence motion. it is widely believed that the army was responsible behind his removal.[31]
After removal, Imran Khan waged a campaign against the military and held rallies and speeches in which he criticized the army's role in Pakistani politics.[32]
Tension reached a melting point when after he was brazenly arrested from the high court by the paramilitary forces, Pakistan Rangers,[33] which later was termed as illegal by the Supreme court.[34] Following his arrest, Khan's supporters stormed the army headquarters in Rawalpindi and set fire to the house of a senior general. The army responded by cracking down on Khan's supporters, and several PTI leaders were arrested.[35]
Khan's campaign against the military has not been without its challenges. The army has a powerful influence in Pakistani politics, and it has been able to silence Khan's critics. Khan himself has been arrested and detained on several occasions.[36][37][38]
Despite the challenges, Khan has shown no signs of backing down from his campaign against the military. He is determined to reduce the military's influence in Pakistani politics, and he believes that this is the only way to ensure that the country becomes more democratic.[39]
A no-confidence motion was tabled against PMImran Khan on 28 March 2022. This was followed by parliamentary allies going from thePakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government to thePakistan Muslim League (N) (PML-N) led opposition. First came independent members and theJamhoori Watan Party, followed by theBalochistan Awami Party (BAP) and defectors from thePakistan Muslim League (Q) (PML-Q). However, the final death blow to the ruling coalition was the defection of theMuttahida Qaumi Movement – Pakistan. The opposition also claimed it had the support from a group ofPTI MNAs led by ex-secretary general of thePTI,Jahangir Tareen. ThePTI alleged that this was in violation of article 63(a) of the Pakistani constitution. The voting was scheduled to take place on 3 April. However, the deputy speaker,Qasim Suri, refused to hold the vote, citing a foreign conspiracy against the government, and article 5 of the constitution. This was laterruled unconstitutional by theSupreme Court. Voting finally took place on 9 April, with Imran Khan losing the vote.Shehbaz Sharif was elected Prime Minister of Pakistan two days later, on 11 April.Initially Imran Khan claimed that the United States was behind his ouster, claiming US Assistant Secretary of StateDonald Lu threatened his government through adiplomatic cipher.[40][41] Later in November 2022, in an interview with theFinancial Times, Khan said he no longer "blamed" the United States and "[a]s far as I'm concerned it's over, it's behind me".[42] In another interview with theVoice of America, he stated "it wasn't the U.S. who told Pakistan [to oust me]." Khan instead claimed Army ChiefGen Bajwa to be behind his ouster, and that the General had "somehow managed to tell the Americans that I was anti-American."[43]
After years of political pressure, the Chief Minister of PunjabUsman Buzdar resigned. The resignation was accepted by the governor on 1 April 2022. The current speaker,Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, a member of thePML(Q), was nominated by thePML(Q) andPTI for the role of chief minister, while the opposition parties,PML-N andPPP nominatedHamza Shehbaz of thePML(N). Due to the speaker being a contestant in the election, the deputy speaker,Dost Muhammad Mazari of thePTI was in charge of the proceedings. The election, originally scheduled for 16 April was moved ahead to 6 April by the deputy speaker. However, the secretary assembly refused to comply with his orders, and a no-confidence motion was moved against him by his own party.
On 8 April, opposition parties in theKhyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly filed a no-confidence motion againstKhyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief MinisterMahmood Khan. The no-confidence motion was filed byAwami National Party parliamentary leaderSardar Hussain Babak, provincial senior vice presidentKhush Dil Khan, MPAShagufta Malik and others from the united opposition in the provincial assembly secretariat. The no-confidence motion has the signatures of more than 20 members.[44][45][46]
On 12 April 2022,PTI submitted a motion of no-confidence against their ownAzad Kashmir prime minister who was then replaced.[47]
WhenPML-N leaderShahbaz Sharif was elected prime minister, PresidentArif Alvi had to take oath from him. However, the president went on leave due to illness. In his absence, Senate ChairmanSadiq Sanjrani administered the oath of office to the new prime minister.[48] On 19 April 2022, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif's34-member cabinet was sworn in, but PresidentArif Alvi refused again.[49]
A session of the Punjab Assembly was held on 16 April 2022, in which the opposition candidateHamza Shahbaz was elected the new Chief Minister but he was not able to take the oath of office. Governor of PunjabOmar Sarfaraz Cheema refused to administer the oath to newly elected Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz.[50] The Supreme Court later declared the election of Hamza Shehbaz as Chief Minister unconstitutional and stated that thedeputy speaker’s actions in the election were unconstitutional. The ruling also installedChaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as the Chief Minister of Punjab.[51]
On 10 April 2022 tens of thousands marched in cities acrossPakistan, 20,000PTI supporters rallied inKarachi[52]
The 2022 Azadi March (Urdu: آزادی مارچ,romanized:Āzādī Mārch,lit. 'Freedom March') was a protest march initiated by theousted former Pakistani prime minister andPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party chairmanImran Khan against the government of his successor, Prime MinisterShehbaz Sharif. On 24 May 2022, Khan announced a long march towards Islamabad starting on 25 May 2022. Khan led the march fromPeshawar, the capital ofKhyber Pakhtunkhwa, where his provincial government helped him. Senior PTI members lead the march fromLahore, the capital ofPunjab.
Hundreds of potential marchers were arrested in an alleged crackdown by the newGovernment of Pakistan. To prevent protesters from reaching theSrinagar Highway,Red Zone (Islamabad) and entering thecapital, hundreds of containers were given to theIslamabad Police and a ban was placed on gatherings. The entrance towards theD-Chowk (Islamabad) was blocked by hundreds of personnel from theCapital Territory Police not allowing protesters to come close by launching tear gas shells at the protesters.
After dawn on26 May, Imran Khan called off the March onBlue Area just 2.1 miles away from where the police stood firing tear gas shells. In a later interview his justification for calling off the march was to avoid bloodshed, as he alleged that his supporters were ready to fight against the police. The government maintained that Khan called off the march owing to a lack of political support.
After the floor crossing, theElection Commission of Pakistan (ECP) de-seated 25 dissident PTI MPAs for defection in the light of Article 63-A of theConstitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 20 May 2022. Five of these MPAs were elected on reserved seats (3 for women and two for minorities) and new PTI MPAs were notified on these seats on 7 July.[53]
The ECP announced on 25 May 2022 that the by-elections would be held on 17 July 2022. The government held 177 seats in the assembly. This included 165PML(N) MPAs, 7PPP MPAs, 1PRHP MPA, and 4 independent MPAs. Therefore, they needed to win 9 seats to gain a majority in the assembly. On the other hand, the opposition held 173 seats. This included 163PTI MPAs and 10PML(Q) MPAs. Therefore, they needed to win 13 seats to gain a majority in the assembly.
By-elections were held inPunjab, Pakistan on 17 July 2022 to elect 20 members of theProvincial Assembly of the Punjab. ThePakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf won a landslide victory on 15 of those 20 seats, leading to the collapse of Chief MinisterHamza Shahbaz'sPML(N)-led coalition government.[54][55]
The 2022–23 Azadi March II (Urdu: حقیقی آزادی مارچ,romanized:Haqiqi Azadi March) was a continuation of the2022 Azadi March I led by the formerprime minister of PakistanImran Khan fromLahore toIslamabad against theShehbaz Sharif ministry's refusal to announce early general elections and the appointment of a newPakistan Army Chief.
On 3 November during a political rally near the town of Gujranwala, 2022 former prime minister of Pakistan Imran Khan was engaged in anassassination attempt, but survived the shooting. The march to the Capital as it was called was an important rally for Khan's attempt to undo his removal from office. A senior leader Asad Umar stated, "Yes, he has been shot, there are pellets lodged in his leg, his bone has been chipped, he has also been shot in his thigh.[56]
Khan-ledPTI has dissolved two of its provincial assemblies (Punjab andKP)[18][19] triggering elections in 60% of country due on 30 April 2023 and 28 May 2023 respectively.[20][21]
Punjab elections due on 30 April 2023 was moved to 8 October 2023 by theElection Commission of Pakistan on the basis of security and economical hurdles which was direct violation of1973's constitution of Pakistan which directs caretaker government to conduct elections in no more than 90 days.[57] On 4 April 2023, the Supreme Court declared the country's poll panel's decision to delay the assembly elections in two provinces as "unconstitutional". The top court on Tuesday ordered the government to hold snap polls in the country's most populous province of Punjab on 14 May.
On 9 May, Imran Khan was placed under arrest by police. Protests and injuries were reported at several locations across Pakistan.[58] On the same day social media was heavily restricted.
On 11 May theSupreme Court of Pakistan deemed the arrest of Imran Khan as unlawful and ordered the Pakistani authorities to release him.[59] However, many senior leaders of the PTI remain in police custody.[12]
On 5 August 2023, Khan was arrested for the second time for allegedly selling state gifts. Session court judge has barred Imran Khan from contesting the elections for the time period of five years and sentenced him to three years in Prison.[60] On 29 August 2023, a Pakistani appeals court overturned the decision and granted bail.[61][62][63]
From 24–27 November 2024,PTI organized theFinal Call protest,[64][65][66][67][68] led byBushra Bibi andAli Amin Gandapur, violating the imposed Section 144 in the capital city. During the protest, supporters ofImran Khan clashed with police inIslamabad as their march to the capital, against the repeated warnings by the government, was obstructed. At least six people, including four security personnel, were killed when a vehicle rammed into them on 26 November.[69] Meanwhile, several were injured during crowd containment via tear gas and rubber bullets, while some journalists were attacked by Khan's supporters. Late at night, Interior MinisterMohsin Naqvi warned that security forces would retaliate with live ammunition.[70]
In response to the clashes, on 27 November, a violent crackdown by Pakistani security forces, led by Naqvi, resulted in casualties. The government denied using live rounds, asserting that the situation was under control after clearing the protest area.[71][72] According to anonymous sources in local hospitals speaking toThe Guardian, the families of the deceased speaking toAl Jazeera, government officials had confiscated records of dead and injured.[73][74] The PTI described the incident as a "massacre," claiming that "hundreds" of its members were killed as police fired live ammunition during the final phase of the protest[75][76], but the party was not able to provide any proofs or identities of the claimed victims to support it's claims. Later, party sources lowered the count stating that up to 20 of their workers had been killed, while the search for other victims was ongoing.[77][78] Government ministers denied any fatalities among PTI protesters during the November 26 security forces raid in Islamabad,[79] with interior minister Naqvi refuting these claims as "propaganda" and challenging the party to provide names of the deceased, which the party did not. Meanwhile, Islamabad's police chief reported five security personnel killed during the clashes and described significant damage caused by protesters.[77][78]Al Jazeera revealed the names of the deceased and contacted the family members of several of the killedPTI protesters.[74]
Public hospitals in the federal capital asserted that no bodies were brought in following the operation. However, documentary evidence contradicts these claims. On November 30,Geo TV Fact Check contacted over a dozen doctors, nurses, and hospital administrators, many of whom either denied the deaths or declined to comment, citing pressure from government authorities. According to the fact check, three individuals with gunshot wounds were brought to hospitals. One was admitted to PIMS Hospital on November 26 at 8:17 PM and pronounced dead at 8:30 PM. Another was pronounced dead at the Federal Government Poly Clinic Hospital at 5:12 PM the same day, while the third was pronounced dead at 5:00 PM.[79] The security forces' crackdown began in the early hours of 27 November 2024.[80]
PTI shared a post on its officialX account stating "In view of the government's brutality and the government's plan to turn the capital into a slaughterhouse for unarmed citizens, (we) announce the suspension of the peaceful protest for the time being."[80]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Authorities have struggled to contain the protest-related violence. Six people, including four members of the security services, were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street overnight into Tuesday. A police officer died in a separate incident.
Police used tear gas to disperse the crowds on Tuesday, with reports of several people killed in clashes. Dozens more were injured, including journalists who were attacked by Khan's supporters, who also beat a videographer covering the protests for The Associated Press news agency and broke his camera.
In the wee hours of Wednesday (November 27, 2024), police and Rangers launched an operation to clear the Blue Area business area, forcing the protesters to move away along with Ms. Bibi and Mr. Gandapur.
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