General elections are being held today in Pakistan to elect a new government.
This is the 12th national general election of Pakistan. According to the report of Pakistani newspaper ‘The News’, in this election, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz may emerge as the largest party, while Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s Pakistan People’s Party may remain at the second position.
Former PM Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is predicted to be at the third position in the Lok Sabha.
Pakistan, a nuclear-armed country with a population of 241 million, is facing many crises these days. From economic crisis to insurgency by Taliban Liberation Army and also facing sour relations with Iran-Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, in the elections being held, people’s eyes are fixed on a ruler who, apart from getting out of the economic crisis, can improve relations with neighboring countries.
Why is Nawaz Sharif at the forefront?
Amidst these expectations, Nawaz Sharif, who returned from self-exile, is leading in the race for the post of PM as rival former Prime Minister Imran Khan is in jail and serving his sentence.
Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf or PTI candidate is contesting the election as an independent candidate after the Supreme Court upheld the Election Commission’s decision to strip PTI of its iconic election symbol cricket ‘bat’.
Battle of 74 vs 35:
On the other hand, 74-year-old Nawaz Sharif is moving towards becoming Prime Minister for the fourth time. He is pitted against 35-year-old Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, son of former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
In election projections, his party Pakistan Peoples Party is said to be at second position. He is a contender for the post of PM from PPP.
Pakistan Army is also the reason for Nawaz Sharif being at the forefront in the election race. It is being said that Nawaz Sharif is getting full support from Pakistan Army. It has been happening in Pakistan that the one whom the army supports, the government in Islamabad is formed.
Why are Pak elections special for India?
India has been an important issue in every election of Pakistan because it is India’s arch rival. Pakistan, which shares borders with Iran and Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, has had warm relations with the US but is a close friend of China.
Amidst all this, Nawaz Sharif is presenting his old friendship with India as a trump card in Pakistan elections. He is trying to win the trust of the Pakistani people by quoting from Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Narendra Modi’s visit to Pakistan, that if his government is formed then the relations between the two countries can become cordial.
Why does Sharif want good relations with India?
Nawaz Sharif wants good relations with neighboring India. He has indicated this many times. The reason behind this is India’s economic progress.
Nawaz Sharif has been adopting a soft stance towards India since his return from London. His party has also indicated this in its election manifesto and has promised to give a message of peace to India. However, there is a condition for this that India will have to return the special status to Kashmir.
In fact, Sharif knows that economic progress cannot be achieved without improving relations with neighboring countries, whereas at present Pakistan is facing an economic crisis.
In his election manifesto, he has presented a series of economic reform initiatives in Pakistan, promising to bring down the inflation rate to 6 percent by 2027.
Apart from this, he has made another big election promise. He has promised that if voted to power, the PML-N will create at least one crore jobs during five years and bring the national unemployment rate down to 5 percent.
This is not possible unless its relations with India become cordial. Here in India too, general elections are to be held in April-May. Prime Minister Modi is claiming to form the government for the third time.