Pakistani opposition alliance to hold rally

MPs from Pakistan’s opposition bloc, named the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), will hold a rally in Lahore today.

The rally is meant to display the opposition’s discontent over military support of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government of Prime Minister Imran Khan. The rally will also mark the beginning of the next phase of the movement to oust Khan, with all 494 members of the PDM threatening to resign from provincial assemblies.

The resignations are designed to delegitimise next year’s Senate elections, given that members of the Senate are designated by the provincial assemblies after elections. However, there is no law in Pakistan that forbids incomplete provincial assemblies from holding the Senate elections. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that the opposition will go through with this threat.

The government is taking no chances, accusing PDM leaders of taking foreign funding while arresting its leaders for violating COVID-19 restrictions. This is likely to further hinder the PDM’s goal of removing Khan. Expect the PDM to continue holding rallies, but they are unlikely to follow through with their threat of mass resignation. Any advancement would likely be contingent on Khan losing military support, but there are no signs of that happening.