Pakistan's opposition parties distanced themselves Monday from Imran Khan's call for mass civil disobedience to unseat the government, as talks began to try to end a destabilising five-day political stand-off. On Sunday he appealed to the people to stop paying utility bills and taxes to the current government, accusing Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of plundering the national wealth to enrich his business empire.
Khan and populist cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri, who led his own "long march" from Lahore, claim the May 2013 general election which Sharif won in a landslide was rigged. They had promised to mobilise hundreds of thousands of supporters to capitalise on popular dissatisfaction with the corruption, power cuts and insecurity that blight daily life in Pakistan and to oust the government.
But Khan was left looking increasingly isolated on Monday as mass support failed to materialise and other opposition parties refused to rally to his call. Former president Asif Ali Zardari, co-chairman of the Pakistan People's Party which is the largest opposition party, said Khan's willingness to use "unconstitutional means" to pursue his goals threatened democracy.
"Democracy and nation will not be served by calls for civil disobedience nor by a stubborn refusal by any side to engage in a meaningful dialogue on political issues," Zardari said in a statement. In response to the protests, the authorities have deployed tens of thousands of security personnel on the streets of the capital and blocked main roads with shipping containers, causing major disruption.
Sirajul Haq, head of the religious political party Jamaat-i-Islami, who has played a key mediating role since the two protest marches began on Thursday, urged a negotiated end to the stand-off. "We are against any move which can derail democracy. We want to resolve all the matters within the framework of law and constitution," he told AFP. International observers rated the general election, in which Khan's PTI came third in its best ever performance, as free and credible.
Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N has accused Khan of trying to derail Pakistan's perennially fragile democratic system. But sources said back-channel talks to resolve the row were under way on Monday and the government said it would soon announce cross-party committees to hold formal talks with PTI and Qadri. Qadri, a dual national Pakistani-Canadian, has called for Sharif's arrest over what he alleges was the murder of his supporters, and for the installation of an interim national government. The cleric, who late Saturday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the government to accept his demands, said he would not be responsible for any repercussions if they were not met. Many Pakistani analysts believe Khan and Qadri mounted their parallel protest campaigns because they sensed Sharif's fraught relationship with his generals had nose-dived in recent months.
Sharif's last term ended in a coup in 1999 and since taking office last year he has clashed with the military on several issues. Many officers are unhappy that Pervez Musharraf, the army chief who ousted Sharif, is on trial for treason. They distrust Sharif's dovish stance towards rival India and were frustrated by delays over the launch of an anti-Taliban offensive. But few think the military, which has ruled Pakistan for around half its 67-year history, wants a coup.
Police estimated the number of people participating in the two protests on Sunday at around 55,000, but the numbers wax and wane under the blazing summer sun. Most of Khan's supporters spend the night at the homes of friends rather than camp out in the open. Although some roads are blocked by shipping containers, most life in most of the capital continues as usual.