JUI’s Karachi rally

The Karachi rally organized by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F on Friday had every flavour that a political gathering requires to succeed, provided one grasps the nuances of politics. However, paradoxically, it did not get the kind of attention by the media that, say, other political rallies have lately got.

By flavours of success, I do not mean the presence of glamorous celebrities in the essentially political congregation. I do not also mean the mandatory attendance of recognizable ‘analysts’ and Talk Show hosts for the rally to do the trick.

Although aforementioned things have become the requisites of any rally in Pakistan, the “Islam Zindabad” Conference in Karachi was, in effect, different. It was different because JUI decided not to be carried away by the recently undertaken supposedly innovative experiments of disparate parties to attract big crowds.

Instead of playing music to keep the participants entertained, JUI leader focused on what it thought had to be said. Unlike other politicians who identify themselves with the ‘Centre-’ or ‘Far-Right’ and resort to populism, JUI’s chief Fazlur Rehman chose to take on the ‘establishment’ in his speech; something that is mostly and carefully avoided by politicians.

Maulana Fazlur Rehman asserted in his speech that ‘it was establishment that brought forward the politicians who were backed by foreign governments.’ He was ostensibly referring to quite a meteoric rise of Imran Khan. Interestingly, he blamed the same ‘establishment’ for never letting JUI win the elections.

Nonetheless, the unusual popularity of Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaaf has certainly unsettled a lot of parties. JUI is one of them. When its key and affluent member, Azam Swati, quit the party and joined the PTI, JUI had no one but the establishment to blame for it. Swati wielded enormous influence in economic realms. His departure from JUI served a heavy blow to the party because of its reliance on him when it came to finances.

Other than that, there are rumours that a few other JUI members may also be considering joining PTI. In such a circumstance, it was unsurprising to see the JUI leader give a slamming to his known and perceived adversaries. Nevertheless, his being critical of establishment was quite unexpected.

The spectacle that is Pakistani politics is becoming ever more intriguing now. With every party claiming to sweep the upcoming elections -from the PTI to PML to PPP, JUI’s Friday rally has somehow sent a message to all and sundry: We too are a force to reckon with.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=10985

Posted by Sajjad Hussain on Jan 30 2012. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.