Pakistan's Military Is 'Petrified' Of Elections: Imran Khan

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan has said that the country has been taken over by “fascists”, and they are "petrified" of the upcoming general elections, in an apparent reference to the powerful military.
    
The 70-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician, in an interview with the BBC, said the establishment had hoped that his removal from power would weaken his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
    
"Normally, it happens when you're out of power for quite a while. But instead, what happened was the party's popularity kept growing," Khan, who was ousted from power through a no-confidence vote in April 2022, said.
    
"They (the establishment) have tried everything. They have put 10,000 people in jail, including women and peaceful protesters. And worse, they have tortured people," Khan said, referring to his supporters arrested following the unprecedented violence on May 9 following his arrest in an alleged corruption case.
    
He added that if his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party was not "finished" as his detractors claimed, the authorities would have announced the date of the election.
    
"Unfortunately, the country has been taken over by fascists, and they are petrified of elections. The reason why I'm suffering is because they know that [in the] elections, we would win hands down. And because of that, they're dismantling a democracy," he said.
    
The powerful military has directly ruled for about half of the history of Pakistan and remained in control of the country's affairs during the other half.
    
The general elections are due later this year as the term of the National Assembly will expire on August 12.
    
Khan claimed that his party is "the only party that was not created by military dictators".
    
He alleges that this is why there has been a campaign to dismantle his party.
    
In recent months, the party has seen significant defections and arrests of key leaders. However, Khan insisted that his party is intact.
    
"How come, despite the establishment openly going against us, trying to dismantle us, how come after we are out of government, we won 30 out of 37 by-elections?" he said.
    
On May 9, violent protests erupted after the arrest of Khan by paramilitary Rangers in Islamabad. Over 20 military installations and state buildings, including the army headquarters in Rawalpindi, were damaged or torched in the violent protests that followed Khan's arrest. 
    
The violence elicited a strong reaction from the government and military vowing to take action against the culprits, leading to an ongoing crackdown against those involved.
    
However, Khan denied his involvement in the arson.
    
"What did you think the supporters would do when they saw the army, the commander, was picking me up from there? Was there not going to be a protest?" he said.
    
Khan insisted that it was the military who incited the violence by sending soldiers instead of police officers to arrest him.
    
"The fact is that the country is on the brink of a major disaster. We are heading [into] what I feel like are the dark ages.
    
"The only solution to Pakistan is free and fair elections. That's the only way we will get out of this mess," he added.