IT is the right decision for the right reasons and it must be supported by all institutions of the state. The Milli Muslim League’s attempts to register itself with the Election Commission as a bona fide political party with the right to contest elections have correctly been rebuffed by the interior ministry.

In its reply to a petition in the Islamabad High Court by the MML, the interior ministry has not only cited relevant local law, but also Pakistan’s international commitments to deny that the MML can be registered with the ECP. Whatever the MML may claim, it is patently clear that the aspiring political party has deep and fundamental links to Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jamaatud Dawa.

To allow the MML to participate in electoral politics would be akin to allowing the LeT and JuD to participate in electoral politics — an incomprehensible idea given the sanctions against the two outfits and the legal watch lists on which they are placed.

In theory, any group that renounces violence, pledges adherence to the Constitution and accepts the principles of democracy should be allowed to participate in the electoral process.

The appearance of a fledgling mainstreaming agenda for militant groups could also be interpreted somewhat positively: the very idea of mainstreaming is built on the notion that vast militant and extremist networks in the country need to be deactivated and their cadres turned away from violence and extremist ideas.

But in practice, a mainstreaming agenda will need to be debated across institutions, implemented with great care and continuously monitored to ensure that groups are not simply using political cover to continue with banned activities.

Thus far, no clear plan for mainstreaming has been mooted and parliament, electoral institutions and the public are unaware of any contours of one. Indeed, it has appeared at times that the MML is attempting to make up its own rules and impose them on the democratic system rather than the other way round.

As elections approach and the ECP draws up its code of conduct, attention must also be given to the wider question of the rules that all candidates and registered political parties must follow.

The TLYRA and other groups may seek to organise their politics on explicitly violent grounds; they should not be allowed to do so. Episodes such as the Faizabad protest cannot be repeated.

Eulogising terrorists executed by the state and campaigning along lines that can be considered hate speech should not be permitted.

The law and electoral codes already bar many such possibilities, but enforcement will be the key. Pakistan is approaching a third consecutive on-time election and a historic transfer of power.

The focus should be on ensuring that the voters have legitimate choices and that the election should be free and fair as never before. Now is not the time for ill-thought-out experiments and spoilers.

Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2017