During his cricketing career Pakistan’s present Prime Minister Imran Khan had intimidated opponents with his lethal bouncers. Now in the political field too, Imran Khan is trying to use the same weapon in his armory to frighten the world. In his address in the recent United Nations (UN) general assembly session, the Pakistani Prime Minister told the world about an impending nuclear war between India and his country. This was perhaps the most irresponsible statement ever made on such a platform. The UN was established to ensure peace in the world after Second World War.
So Imran Khan could have used that stage to defuse the prevailing tensions between the two countries. He could have promised to make Pakistani soil free from terrorists, just as Bangladesh had done a years ago before drawing the attention of the world to alleged human rights violations in Kashmir. Every nation knows which country is instigating violence and terrorist activities in Kashmir. Now the world in unison has vowed to wipe out terrorism from its root. So the better option for Imran Khan was to join the anti-terrorism force first before levelling charges against others. But Pakistan’s Prime Minister did just the opposite. He virtually accused the entire world of being greedy by alleging that nations are silent on Kashmir as they are looking to capture the huge market in India.
So far the world knew Imran Khan as a true sportsman. He used to play his game hard but never crossed the line. It was he, who was instrumental in bringing neutral umpires to officiate in test matches. When he first opted for neutral umpires objections were raised from many quarters. But Imran Khan was undeterred. He not only stuck to his position, but also opted for V. K. Ramaswamy as one of the umpires from India, who was arguably the best during his time. The result of Imran Khan’s historic effort was that Pakistan beat West Indies in that series and no one attributed partial umpiring as one of the reasons for victory. Rather everyone praised Imran Khan for providing cricket a new lease of life ensuring an unbiased environment. Naturally the world waited with bated breath when such a true sportsman took over the reins of Pakistan. It was not unusual to expect that the new Prime Minister of Pakistan be impartial while dealing with terrorism.
But Imran Khan did very little to curb terrorism, the greatest enemy of mankind. It was only after constant US pressure that his government arrested some terrorists and seized some bank accounts of terrorist organisations. That effort was initiated only after US threatened to stop all aid to Pakistan for being the breeding ground of terrorism. His government did not make any attempt to prevent Pulwama terror strike. Even after India made it known to the world that terrorists were camping in Balakot, Pakistan continued to deny it. And now, the same country is accusing India of attacking Pakistan by sending its air force to Balakot. No one has ever seen such double standard from Imran Khan in his playing days. But now instead of neutral umpires, he is clearly seeking the help of favourable empires. He has wilfully forgotten the fact that almost every country in the world is now living in fear of terror strikes. In such a situation, no one will extend support to a country that has made terrorism its national policy to derail other’s progress. So it is time now for Imran Khan to talk peace, not war. The only war he should fight is against terrorism.
