THE court verdict is in and it seems to have gone overwhelmingly in PTI’s favour; most of the judges felt the party continues to exist as an entity and that it was entitled to its reserved seats in parliament.
It’s a legal victory, and that comes with its own sense of a ‘moral’ victory. However, it is perhaps too soon to take all this as an indication of any change in the larger political context, where the friction between the party and establishment continues unabated. Nonetheless, the verdict points to a number of larger and smaller trends in politics.
Weakening authority: First, the verdict highlights the weakening authority of the establishment, where its ability to win over other sections of society during times of civil-military conflicts is now facing what appear to be unprecedented limitations. In the context of the changing demographics and a worsening economy, the idea that only one institution can bring stability to the country is proving harder and harder to ‘sell’; as a result, fewer and fewer are willing to back many decisions.
The pushback from the judiciary can be seen in this context. Which, of course, in itself gained strength from the public opinion which was expressed on Feb 8.
We face institutions and men in charge who are still not ready to heed the message.
However, this weakening authority is running parallel to the weakening of political parties. The establishment is now in a position to impose the ‘hybrid model’ as it has come to be called, where mainstream........