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- author, Saad Sohail & Kelly Ng
- role, in islamabad and singapore
When former Prime Minister Imran Khan was dragged out of court by police on May 9, 2023 on corruption charges, the reaction in Pakistan was unlike anything seen before.
Furious supporters took to the streets in cities across the country, targeting buildings owned by Pakistan’s powerful military. This came as a shock to what is widely known locally as the Establishment.
“When he was arrested, our hearts sank. We were crying and didn’t know what to do,” Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Party (PTI) said in a statement. Hasan said as he rode his bicycle to Lahore’s Central Market, where they had gathered.
By that time, the lieutenant general’s residence in the city had already been set on fire.
On the streets of the capital, Islamabad, where Khan was arrested, protesters pulled down road signs, set fires and threw stones. Numerous military monuments were destroyed.
The military, which has long held sway over the Muslim-majority country, was quick to declare May 9, 2023, a “dark day.” They also described the protests as an “attack on the military.”
A year on, many supporters of the former cricket star are still reeling from the physical and emotional scars they suffered from that day’s events.
Hasan was one of hundreds of people arrested for taking part in the protests. Many told BBC Urdu that although they took to the streets “peacefully” and were not involved in any violence, they were still detained without due process and abused in custody.
Hasan said he took part in the protests because “we felt that what happened to Imran Khan was wrong…We told the police, ‘Today you crossed a line that you should not cross.’ “I was doing it,” he said.
“Many Pakistanis have an emotional connection with Khan Sahib,” he said, using local language and respect. “He’s like a brother and a father figure to us.”
Mr. Abrar, another supporter who took to the streets after Khan’s arrest, said that after seeing the footage of Khan’s arrest last May, he felt that “a leader should not have been subjected to such humiliation” and “immediately ” he recalled leaving his home in Lahore.
Khan is a cricketing icon in a country where the game enjoys an almost fanatical following. He led his national team to World Cup victory in 1992 and brought glory to his country as captain. Many Pakistanis grew up admiring him.
But critics claim that Mr. Khan had military support in his rise to power, an allegation denied by both sides. The military has had a major influence on Pakistan for most of its existence, playing an important behind-the-scenes role in the country’s politics.
He was elected prime minister in July 2018, but was removed from office four years later in a vote of no confidence in parliament. Just before the general election in February this year, he was barred from running due to several criminal convictions. Although he is fighting a number of lawsuits, including corruption and terrorism charges, he remains a powerful divisive force in Pakistan.
During February’s elections, his party was denied an electoral symbol and a unified platform but was forced to field candidates as independents, making it the single largest bloc in a shocking result. However, he fell short of the majority needed to form a government.
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At least 10 people were killed and hundreds injured in the May 9 protests, which authorities said caused losses of 2.5 billion rupees ($9 million, £7.2 million).
The ensuing crackdown was effective and severe. Imprisoned protesters spoke of abuse and despair.
“Prisons sometimes felt like graveyards. Just as we say prayers at the graves of our loved ones, families may have said the same prayers when they came to pick us up. ” said Abrar, who was released earlier this year after living the life he had spent. He was sentenced to nine months in prison.
“My daughter would be crying, but I couldn’t wipe her tears,” he added.
“They treated us like we were terrorists, not Pakistanis,” Intizar, a fellow detained protester, told the BBC’s Urdu prison staff.
“I said I was just protesting and not vandalizing,” he said.
He turned himself in to police after the police tracked down his family and broke down the gate of his home to locate him.
“I don’t think I can ever explain what we and our families have endured.”
Former Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said the events of May 9, 2023 were just a continuation of past PTI protests.
“This atmosphere was created because the PTI founder was determined to prove himself more powerful than the state,” he said, referring to Imran Khan.
“How can you say, ‘If I get arrested, I’m crossing a line that I shouldn’t cross?’ This is like rebellion.”
A year on, political watchers say Pakistan will not be able to move forward unless the protesters’ grievances are addressed.
Benazir Shah, a journalist who covered the protests, said: “Rather than investigating this issue, I think the state is just venting its anger as if it is trying to take revenge.”
Shah called on authorities to launch an investigation and clarify the role of everyone involved.
“Until this is done, we cannot move forward. If the nation remains silent until you answer the questions that have gone unanswered for the past year, we cannot move forward and we cannot move forward. ‘We won’t be able to do that,’ she said. ‘We’ll be able to talk about the future.’
However, the military remains steadfast in its determination to punish those responsible for the protests.
“We cannot negotiate with anarchist groups,” military spokesman Maj. Gen. Ahmed Sharif told reporters, referring to the PTI.
“The only way forward is for anarchist groups like this one to apologize to the people and promise to distance themselves from the politics of hate and engage in constructive politics.”
The protesters quoted in this article have been given pseudonyms for their safety.
