Imran Khan’s one mistake, just four hours before the election, cost him Pakistan’s top job

*Paromita Das

According to sources, the establishment was fine with delaying voting on the no-confidence motion until 8 p.m., hours before Imran Khan’s ouster in a no-confidence vote.

According to sources, they were even willing to accept his “threat letter” and “foreign conspiracy” theory.

So, what went wrong for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief, who has been fighting for weeks to keep power? The fatal error of moving a file in order to depose Army Chief General Qamar Bajwa.

And how did Khan manage to avoid arrest?
In an exclusive and detailed account of what happened in the hours leading up to Khan’s no-trust vote:

Around 8 p.m., Khan decides to fire Bajwa and instructs the defense ministry to issue two notifications: one to fire Bajwa and the other to appoint Lt General Faiz Hameed as the new Chief of Army Staff (COAS).

The notifications are to be delivered from the defense ministry to the law ministry, where an Imran aide is already present. From there, it’s on to the Prime Minister and then the President.

Bajwa, on the other hand, prevents notifications from reaching the law ministry.

Around 9 p.m., Bajwa and Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Nadeem Anjum arrives at the Prime Minister’s residence in Islamabad.
Ground zero – the Prime Minister’s residence: Islamabad has been placed on high alert, and the police have been notified. At least 36 army vans are being moved towards the PM’s residence. The high court and the Election Commission (EC) are both open. The EC is ready to make a decision on the foreign funding case right away. Bajwa informs Khan that the foreign funding case is being opened and that the entire cabinet will be arrested. Khan is asked to conduct voting right away, but Speaker Asad Qaisar refuses to do so. He has been asked to resign.
If voting does not take place, the Supreme Court will be opened at 12 a.m.

Faiz over Bajwa: As part of his political strategy, Khan wanted Faiz Hameed to replace Bajwa as Army Chief so that he could manage the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), and Akhtar Mangal Group. Once that was accomplished, it should have been relatively easy for Khan to overcome the no-trust vote, and even if he had failed, the margin would have been narrow.
The tension rises as a prisoners’ van is stationed outside the PM’s residence, just as the EC’s decision on the foreign funding case is expected at the same time. Following this order, the case will be transferred to the Islamabad High Court, where Khan will be arrested on treason charges.