Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and Its Impact on Pakistani Politics

The no-confidence motion tabled by the Pakistan Democratic Movement against Imran Khan on March 8, 2022, was a significant moment in the history of Pakistan’s political landscape. The motion was a result of widespread discontent among the masses with the policies and performance of the government led by Imran Khan. The electronic media too gave hype against the governance of the Imran Khan government. The opposition parties and other power groups joined to bring down the government and push for a change in the political direction of the country. The motion was passed by a majority vote in the parliament, and the PDM officially overthrew the regime of Imran Khan in April 2022. The Pakistan Democratic Movement along with its allies formed a new government, and Shahbaz Sharif was elected as the new prime minister. The new government made promises during a no-confidence motion to deliver good governance, ensure economic stability, and have a better standard of living for the people of Pakistan. The minorities and marginalized communities thought that the PDM would work for their rights to create a more inclusive and democratic society. But the very next day, PDM came to power, and they altered all the NAB laws to get relief from the corruption cases. The changes brought about by the Pakistan Democratic Movement’s new government were condemned by the people, and the country was seen declining. In conclusion, the no-confidence motion tabled against Imran Khan and the subsequent regime change in Pakistan in April 2022 was the start of a dark regime.

This move was seen as a major setback for the anti-corruption efforts in the country and raised serious concerns about the intentions of the newly elected government. Critics argued that the changes were aimed at providing immunity to corrupt politicians and bureaucrats, and were a clear attempt to undermine the accountability mechanism. The move was also seen as a sign of the government’s lack of commitment to good governance and transparency and raised questions about its ability to tackle corruption effectively.

The alteration of the NAB laws was widely condemned by civil society organizations, social media, and the Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf, PTI. They demanded the judiciary to take Suo moto notice and immediate restoration of the original laws and called for the government to take concrete steps to tackle corruption. The move also sparked widespread protests and rallies, with people demanding new elections, an end to corruption and the protection of their rights.

In conclusion, the alteration of the NAB laws was a major disappointment for the people of Pakistan and demonstrated the government’s lack of commitment to tackling corruption. It was a clear sign that the government was not willing to take the necessary steps to establish good governance and ensure transparency in the country. The move has damaged the credibility of the government and raised serious concerns about its ability to deliver on its promises. After this incident, the investment inflows and foreign remittances decline rapidly. The growth rate falls to negative from 6%. The sensitive price index of inflation rose by 40%. More than 7M are unemployed during the 10 months of the PDM regime. The Pakistani rupee is depreciating against the dollar every day. The economy is on the verge of collapse. International economic surveys have issued a warning for the default risk of Pakistan. All this is happening in the country because people see the PDM rulers as the corrupt culprits of the nation. There have been hundreds of examples of their aforementioned ruling period.

They have been former rulers of Pakistan, and they are businessmen. They have successive governments held in different provinces and the country. Therefore, the establishment of Pakistan considered them experienced in all fields. On the other hand, Imran Khan is considered clumsy in politics and the economy due to being a sportsman. Here a point of concern is that Pakistan is the worst example of a deep state, where the government is run by militant persons. Here we can look into the PDM’s previous policies and the Imran Khan regime. Imran Khan corrected all the mistakes of these veterans with great understanding in his government. In 2016, the Pakistan Muslim League PML-N signed a 15-year LNG deal with Qatar, which also fixed the price for 10 years, which was Brent at 13.37 per cent. The government had to pay a letter of credit of $170 million. This may cause harm to the country, but Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was accused of kickbacks worth millions in NAB. When Imran Khan came to power, he announced a review of such an expensive deal. Eventually, the wise man’s agreement was rescheduled and a new ten-year agreement was reached with Qatar. Under which 10.2 per cent Brent was fixed. The letter of credit was also halved from 170 million to 84 million and thus new government reached a 31 percent cheaper deal. With this, the country has to make a profit of three billion dollars in ten years. Khaqan Abbasi was so experienced that Engro group’s chemical terminal was rented for 15 years at Rs 27 million per day. While Imran Khan set up an already unused LPG terminal at Port Qasim. It became useful for the import of LNG at a cost of only Rs 30 to 40 million. The Pakistan People’s Party PPP signed a contract with the Turkish company Karke for 564 million for the rental power plant in 2009. The PML-N cancelled the case along with Iftikhar Chaudhry and thus the company won the case in 2013 by filing a case in the International Court of Justice. It resulted in a penalty of $ 1.2 billion in Pakistan. On this, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf was named Raja Rental and it was suspected that the PML-N leader, Raja Rental and Iftikhar Chaudhry would also have been involved in this planning. Well, the country suffered a great loss and some powerful people benefited. When the clumsy government of Imran Khan came, he negotiated with the company, but the company refused any new contract. Because the company was getting double the amount as a penalty as compared to the investment. Finally, Prime Minister Imran Khan contacted the Turkish President and used diplomatic efforts. He recommended to the Turkish President to remove the penalty by the company, given Pakistan’s poor economic condition. In the end, due to the diplomatic struggles of Imran Khan, Pakistan achieved a historic victory and this damage to the veterans was waived by a clumsy. Similarly, the veterans entered into an agreement with BHP in the Recodec project, under which Pakistan was to get only a 25 per cent share of profits. Once again, the matter reaches the court. Incidentally, Iftikhar Chaudhry is also credited with cancelling this agreement. Gold Barrack, the then-original party to the deal, wins the case against Pakistan in 2012 and pursues the case. A few years later, she files a compensation claim of $11 billion. In 2018, Khan’s government takes time for the International Court of Justice and strengthens the case. Based on arguments, the court halves the fine in 2019, which amounts to six billion dollars. khan approaches the company again and finally, after lengthy negotiations, he not only waives the whole penalty but also signs a new agreement with a 50% share of the profits in the Recode project. Now look at the motorway that the PML-N used to build for Rs 372 million per kilometre, the same motorway is being built for Rs 17 crore per kilometre despite everything being expensive. It is that not only Khan pulls Pakistan out of external troubles but has also revised many expensive contracts with private companies in his country. On foreign trips on which previous rulers used to spend millions, he works for just a few lacs. His every visit costs 10% of the price of the previous ones. These are the major reasons why the country is under chaos since April 2022, and detest against the PDM government is rising with every passing day. The nation is demanding new elections and chanting the slogan “Imported Government Not Accepted”.