Every few months since the May 9, 2023 riots, government officials have threatened to impose a ban on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), despite legal experts across the political divide acknowledging that such a step is difficult, if not impossible, under existing laws.
The threats have reached a fever pitch in recent months, driven by messages issued by incarcerated former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who routinely targets Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and issues calls for mass protests, with an ultimate aim to oust the incumbent government.
Earlier this month, the Punjab Assembly even adopted a nonbinding resolution seeking a ban on Khan and his PTI for being “anti-state.” Yet, despite the public posturing, government officials acknowledge there is little headway in actually seeking a formal ban on the PTI, likely due to the legal quagmire it could unleash.
Speaking with The Standard, Minister of State for Law and Justice Aqeel Malik rejected the impression that the federal cabinet had discussed any potential ban on the PTI. However, he did not rule it out in future, maintaining it was possible under prevailing laws. “I personally believe it shouldn’t happen until and unless the party is found involved in activities against the national ideology,” he said, adding the Interior Ministry would need to provide sufficient evidence to justify such a step.
Citing past precedents, he noted that the Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Awami Party (NAP) were both banned in the 1970s, while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was forced to form the PPP-Parliamentarians amidst restrictions under military dictator Pervez Musharraf.
Rebutting Malik, PTI Senator Ali Zafar—himself a senior lawyer—said the Constitution granted every citizen the right to do politics, as interpreted and applied by the Supreme Court. The government, he stressed, had no evidence to suggest the entirety of the PTI was involved in any anti-state activities. “It’s not sufficient to allege that one leader or two leaders affiliated with the party are carrying on illegal activities and the political party should be banned as a whole,” he argued, adding it is also not possible to ban a popular party as it can just rebrand under a different name.
“When they tried to ban the PPP, it renamed itself as the PPPP so banning the PTI won’t serve any purpose politically,” he said. “It would come back with another name—PTI-Parliamentarians—and we can keep renaming the party until the government changes course,” he added.
Cautioning the government against any such move, he warned that it could trigger “unprecedented” consequences. “Such moves have never worked in history,” he added.
Legal opinion
Prevailing consensus agrees with Zafar. Analysts and politicians alike argue that outlawing parties would likely exacerbate polarization rather than resolve it. More sustainable solutions, they suggest, are democratic competition, electoral processes, and individual accountability.
Former Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) secretary Kanwar Dilshad told The Standard he did not see the government’s threats as anything more than pressure tactics. “Banning a political party requires a lot of homework and the incumbent government has not done any such homework in this regard,” he claimed, noting that as a first step the Interior Ministry would need to send a reference to the Federal Constitutional Court under Article 17(2) of the Constitution. This step, he added, should have been taken the day after the military spokesman dubbed Imran Khan—without directly naming him—a “national security threat.”
Recalling the PTI is currently not even registered as a political party with the ECP, he said banning it would serve no purpose for the government. By contrast, he noted, the Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan—despite being proscribed by the Interior Ministry over terrorism links—remains a registered party and could participate in upcoming polls.
Senior Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Aitzaz Ahsan, a vocal supporter of Imran Khan, similarly said any move to ban the PTI would first require the government establishing a case proving the opposition party was acting against the national interest. Referring to the press conference of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) director-general, he said the military spokesman was no investigating officer and had no mandate to declare anyone a “threat to national security.”
Tentative support
Ahsan’s PPP, however, does not fully subscribe to his views. A key ruling coalition partner, the party has made clear it would support the government in imposing a ban on the PTI if the opposition party acts in violation of the Constitution.
PPPP Secretary General Nayyar Bukhari, a prominent lawyer, told The Standard the Constitution requires certain prerequisites and conditions for a potential ban on any political party. “If somebody works against the solidarity and integrity of Pakistan, he cannot function under the Constitution and the election laws,” he said, adding that whoever violates the law should face repercussions and the PPPP believes in rule of law.
“The PTI leadership should understand to what extent and in which manner they can do politics,” he advised. “If they start violating the Constitution, how can the PPPP defend them,” he questioned, noting his party could only defend political opponents facing injustice.
“The PPPP is not suggesting a ban on the PTI but if [the opposition party] transgresses the constitutional ambit, it should be treated according to the law and we’ll endorse any such move by the government,” he added.
Public reaction
According to Dilshad, any attempt by the government to ban the PTI must factor in its potential fallout. He specifically pointed to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, where the PTI is in government, stressing the already-volatile province could not afford further unrest.
The former ECP official also noted that the process of banning a political party can take months and may never reach fruition. Referring to 1975, he recalled then-prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto banned NAP but trials against the party’s leaders were still ongoing when the government fell in 1977. Military dictator Gen Ziaul Haq subsequently withdrew the case and released the NAP leaders, effectively ending the ban.
The PTI’s Zafar agrees, noting any ban on the PTI cannot diminish the public support for Imran Khan. “The PTI is not a party,” he told The Standard. “It is Imran Khan; if he makes another party, we would all go with him, as would the public.”
Ultimately, the government can push through a ban on the PTI, but banning its politics or its support may prove easier said than done.