Imran Khan Wants Agitation, not Reconciliation

Tuesday, 23 December 2025 | Web Desk

A clear contradiction has surfaced within the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) regarding its political strategy.

On one hand, Opposition Alliance chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai and several senior PTI leaders are emphasizing dialogue, reconciliation, and a political solution with the government. To this end, appeals are also being made for Nawaz Sharif and Maulana Fazlur Rehman to play a role.

On the other hand, Imran Khan, contrary to the narrative of his own party’s senior leaders, is talking about protest, street agitation, and confrontation instead of dialogue.

After the sentence in the Toshakhana case, Imran Khan targeted the senior military leadership directly on social media. According to sources, he has also directed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Suhail Afridi to prepare for a street movement.

In his column, senior journalist Ansar Abbasi wrote that Imran Khan himself says he has no problem with the military, his problem is with one individual. According to Abbasi, if the founder’s claim is true, then he should first condemn the May 9 incidents and issue a shutdown call to his social media teams running propaganda against the military. Only if he does this will people believe his statement that ‘the military is my own, I have no problem with it.’

Political experts say that the biggest obstacle to resolving the political crisis is Imran Khan himself. His aggressive and non-reconciliatory strategy is not only affecting the prospects for dialogue but is also leading PTI further into isolation.

According to sources, the Shehbaz Sharif government’s stance is that talks are impossible without an expression of remorse or apology. They argue that those who attacked military installations, ridiculed martyrs, and ran a character assassination campaign against the military and its senior leadership cannot engage in negotiations under such circumstances.