The PML-N governments in Islamabad and Lahore have overreacted to Tahirul Qadri and his theatrics — on this there can be little argument and it is impossible not to condemn the violence that Qadri’s supporters have suffered at the hands of the state so far.

Yet, without in any way downplaying the unacceptable response of the PML-N, it is important to put the demands of Mr Qadri in the proper context which in this case is a democratic, constitutional, rule-of-law perspective.

Strident as Mr Qadri’s criticism of the PML-N is — and before this, of the PPP — what, exactly, are his demands? It comes down to the overthrow of an elected government because the leadership, according to Mr Qadri, is allegedly unfit to rule. But who is Mr Qadri? What are his political credentials? Why are his demands worth listening to? Why is a political non-entity in any way to be regarded as a serious player in the political arena?

In truth, everything about Mr Qadri and his public utterances suggest he is the very definition of a demagogue.

Overthrowing elected systems to replace them with an unspecified system that would allegedly be more responsive to the perceived needs of the public is the quintessential demand of a demagogue.

In Mr Qadri’s view of the world, rights of the public are of no intrinsic value — what matters most is what Mr Qadri believes the public needs from the state in terms of service delivery, governance and the right kind, in Mr Qadri’s reckoning, of leadership.

What that really amounts to is Mr Qadri trying to give himself a veto over the system and attempting to put himself in a position to dictate to the people, perversely by acting in the name of the people. That is unacceptable, undemocratic, unconstitutional and even immoral.

A year ago, Mr Qadri chose not to participate in the electoral process — surely, there was some awareness that party candidates would not fare well. Even now, Mr Qadri deliberately chooses to keep himself ineligible for participation in electoral politics by retaining the citizenship of another country.

And even now, he seems unwilling to do anything more than engage in political tourism — visiting Pakistan to grandstand, perform for the TV cameras, shout a bit against civilian politicians, before returning to his preferred abode abroad and political irrelevance. Surely, a demagogue like Tahirul Qadri is anything but what Pakistan needs.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2014