By Asif Mahmood
Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf is drifting further away from the national mainstream despite its popularity and its government in one province. This is no longer only a political crisis. It has become a social tragedy. Political disputes are one thing, but sociologists should now seriously reflect on how PTI followers can be brought out of this tide of anger and restored to a normal social life.
These people are not aliens. They are our own friends, siblings and relatives. Yet many of them no longer behave normally. They move about like walking volcanoes. Old friendships have been ruined, families are strained, and social etiquette has collapsed. Respect, restraint and decency have vanished. They have become so consumed by passion that the dignity of both self and other no longer matters.
Among one’s own relatives, such examples exist. Once it was possible to politely differ with them. Now, even two sentences of disagreement provoke fear. They forget who they are speaking to. Lifelong relations mean nothing. They immediately launch personal attacks, declaring you dishonest, corrupt and bought. And once they start, there is no limit to how far they will go.
Try disagreeing with them in any measure. They will take it as a personal affront. Their single remaining standard for respect is loyalty to Imran Khan. If you do not accept him as the last honest man on earth, they will treat you as one of the worst people alive.
They do not accept reasoning. They have no interest in it. Their only argument is Imran Khan himself. Rational debate becomes impossible because after two exchanges they lose composure, and then neither your dignity nor your safety is secure.
They present themselves as champions of awareness but without any performance to support it. Ask them about the governance record of Usman Buzdar or Ali Amin Gandapur, and they erupt in the most abusive language. Their proficiency in insults has no parallel. If there were a Nobel Prize or a world championship for this skill, they would win without competition.
According to their worldview, everyone in Pakistan is a thief except Imran Khan. They see no point in conversation because all others, in their eyes, are corrupt. And yet, if one of these supposed thieves joins their ranks, he instantly becomes a saint. If someone leaves their ranks, he becomes the worst human being across seven continents.
To be fair, not all PTI workers are like this. Many are decent and quiet people. They simply plead that the young ones are frustrated because their mandate was stolen. They advise you to ignore the abuse and just admire the sweetness of the abusers’ lips.
But mandates are always declared stolen here. No losing party has ever conceded defeat. And the truth is that even when their mandate was intact, when they ruled the federation, when they danced at D Chowk under one page, their language was just as bitter. Even then they accepted no one else’s legitimacy.
For them, a good judge is one who greets them with unrestrained delight. A good journalist is one who abuses their opponents. A good army chief is one who shelters them like a benevolent guardian.
This is not simply a political disruption. It is a cultural disaster. It has torn apart the social fabric and destroyed moral norms. Yes, political discourse was harsh before as well. But the way this abusive behaviour has been institutionalised is a civilizational tragedy in itself.
They have cut themselves off from national life and collective morality. Neither the living nor the dead are safe from their wrath. They have become a cult. In their devotion to the cult, neither state nor society matters. From ordinary workers to top leaders, exaggeration in reverence has gone so far that describing it causes fear.
Certainly this is not true of all, but it is the dominant impression created by those who excel in the behaviour described above.
Yet whatever they are, they are still a part of this society. They are our own young people, our own relatives and friends. They must be brought out of this psychological state and returned to normal life, where they may disagree, criticise and participate in politics, but without turning it into a cultural and moral catastrophe.
This work cannot be done by traditional politics because politics is adversarial by nature. This requires goodwill, not rivalry. It is a task for experts in sociology and psychology.
Is there anyone willing to do it?
These young people do not need hatred. They need goodwill. They are the country’s youth, its asset. A comprehensive programme for their psychological rehabilitation should be initiated.
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