The long march, which its opponents had claimed would only draw a few hundred people, is now proving to be a relentless effort to usher in the change that has been long overdue. Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to greet the man who conjured it and had the drive and tenacity to follow it relentlessly to its intended destination in every city along the Grand Trunk Road, which is advertised as the Sharif area in fiction.
This march has never occurred before in Pakistani history, not just in terms of the sheer number of participants but also in terms of the participants’ unwavering fervour and the potential it contains to alter the course of the nation and its citizens. This long march continues despite threats and persecution from the ruling political elite, which includes torturing its members while they are in custody, an ineffective judiciary, a corrupt and complicit bureaucracy, a compromised establishment, and dysfunctional state institutions that are overrun with thieves and criminals. The mafias and cartels, who have had a stranglehold on the nation since its founding and are unwilling to relinquish it, are the target of this march. This march aims to end the practise of making decisions that affect the nation’s citizens behind closed doors. This is a patriotic march that was inspired by the suffering that the people have endured as a result of the corrupt political elite’s years-long bartering of their interests in exchange for opulent homes and pelf stashed abroad, where they flee whenever there is a threat of holding them accountable for their crimes. Every thief, criminal, ex-convict, and fugitive in the nation’s political system opposes the march being led by the one man in question. And what about that? Khan is clearly the winner!
The criminal cabal and its supporters and allies have turned to the most hideous and demonic conduct possible in an effort to kill Imran Khan after failing to challenge him politically. Thankfully, he managed to get out and is now headed toward recovery. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sana Ullah, and a Major General from the ISI are among those being mentioned as potential perpetrators on the basis of reliable previous intelligence information. The party has asked that they be immediately removed from their positions and put on trial for organising and carrying out the attempted assassination. Moreover, Khan has announced that he will resume the march from where it was interrupted.
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On the nation’s roadways, a phenomenal phenomenon is developing. It is a show that should be seen. One is amazed. One is taken aback by the perseverance and tenacity that are on display for all to witness. It is beyond human capacity to motivate a whole country to take on a task of this magnitude that is fraught with the prospect of detention, torture, imprisonment, and retaliation. But there they come by the tens of thousands, becoming more and more energised and determined. They are unrestrained by fear and submission, raising the national flag high. They are penning a brand-new story that is packed with bravery and tenacity. They are moving forward with the knowledge that success will be their reward. Nothing can stop them. Nothing can sway their determination. Nothing makes them fearful. The honey of liberation consumes them. They are furious because they can smell justice. The idea of equity and equality captivates them. They’re entering a brand-new Pakistan.
However, threats are always present. Will they allow the march’s inherent promise to be realised, which would equate to advocating their own political doom, with the vultures out there with their talons outstretched, ready to pounce upon what they regard to be their prey? because the risks and the stakes are as described. The criminal mafias would no longer be able to participate in national politics if the Pakistani people were to triumph, and they might never be able to do so again. Will they resign to releasing this golden hen out of their hands after ruthlessly pillaging the nation for decades and building their criminal enterprises throughout the world?
Given the way they have returned to power with the active help of forces both inside and outside the nation, this does not seem to be a possibility. However, the issue is that their sins have tainted them far too much. The legal system is looking for them. They have avoided being charged. To avoid being held accountable, they have made self-serving modifications to the NAB laws. However, they are also aware that it cannot hold up in court and will be overturned if decent people are chosen to lead this nation. Such a potential is being created by this march, which the ruling criminal cabal will do all in their power to prevent. This is the crux of the conflict: between a group of criminals who obtained power through illegal means and the growing aspiration of those who want everything to change in order to put an end to the rampage of crime and corruption and allow those deserving of managing the state to assume control.
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Given the current situation, it is unlikely that the criminal incumbents will allow for a peaceful march leading to the convening of early elections in the nation. They’ll employ every dirty tactic in the book to make the prospect unhappy. Only if the forces that are patronising them continue to do so will this be possible. That would go against what the nation right now needs. To secure this, hundreds of thousands of people are on the roadways. Will this right be denied to them? Will some people’s inflated egos prevail over the fate of an entire country? Will a criminal cabal’s hunger for power crush the hopes of millions? Will those in positions of power allow the nation to fall into ruin while they do nothing?
The march won’t vanish into thin air. It is a current reality and will last as long as the goal of having elections is not accomplished. There are two ways forward: a peaceful one that would use constitutional procedures to establish a legal administration or a violent one that might cause havoc but would ultimately advance the goal of early elections. Which route—that of violence or that of peace—would you choose? This is the crucial issue that the nation is currently facing.
Not only must this be addressed, but also its execution must be facilitated. The obvious decision should be to follow the path of peace. The burden of responsibility to keep the nation out of trouble falls squarely on the shoulders of those who have the ability to influence events in either direction. But, unfortunately, it seems that Pakistan is trying to transform itself through violence.
