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In this analysis
Pakistan's political class has spent years arguing over whether Imran Khan is victim, demagogue, destabiliser or all three. That argument misses the institutional point.
The case
AP reported that Khan remains imprisoned after multiple convictions and was returned to Adiala prison following a hospital examination ordered after legal pressure over his health.
State & Power's view
Democracies are tested by how they handle opponents who are popular, abrasive and threatening to the establishment. If the answer is prolonged exclusion through courts, jail and administrative control, elections become less persuasive as evidence of genuine competition.
The strongest counterargument
Khan is not above the law. Political popularity cannot immunise a former prime minister from criminal convictions, and Pakistan has a long history of leaders trying to weaponise institutions against one another.
What matters next
Case transparency, access to legal counsel, party campaigning rights and the military's visible role in political bargaining are the tests that matter.
Editorial note
This is a State & Power opinion article. Factual claims are linked to primary documents or high-trust reporting. The conclusion is the author's editorial judgment, not a claim of neutral reporting.