The tension between the Pakistani Army Chief and its Prime Minister Imran Khan seems to have culminated. If the media reports are to be believed Pakistani PM Imran Khan is staring at losing his post. However, a coup is unlikely, the Pakistani Army is mulling only at replacing Imran. The disagreement over the nomination of the next Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief has been seen as a major issue behind the fallout.
On November 20, Lt General Nadeem Anjum will take over as DG (ISI). Tensions between Imran Khan and army head Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, on the other hand, are at an all-time high, with Khan still supporting sitting ISI chief Lt Gen Faiz Hameed.
As per a report in CNN-News18, the Pakistani Army has given two options to Imran Khan: either he resigns before November 20 or the opposition parties introduce change in the Parliament. According to the reports, Imran Khan is quitting in both cases, and the incumbent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf will lose its political allies Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) in the weeks ahead.
Imran's probable replacement
Parvez Khattak of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Shahbaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) are the most likely candidates for Prime Minister. The dismal status of the country's economy has also put Imran Khan's political space in jeopardy, as have long-running protests by the TLP, whose demands the Prime Minister was compelled to concede in order to cease the violent rallies across important stations.
The Pakistani government released hundreds of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) activists last week as part of a deal to quell violent riots that resulted in the deaths of several police officers. For months, the party has been protesting against the Pakistani government, demanding the release of its party's leader, Saad Rizvi, who was detained in April.
Analysts pointed out Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa's displeasure with the civilian government that was delaying Lt Nadeem Anjum's appointment as ISI Chief.
