IMRAN Khan’s conscience seems to have woken up rather belatedly to reflect on his mistakes as chief executive. Days after an ignominious drumming out from the Prime Minister’s Office, the former premier has displayed the first signs that he may yet be capable of displaying remorse.

In at least two private conversations, first with the PTI lawyers’ forum and then with a select group of journalists, Mr Khan has communicated that he feels his government’s relentless witch-hunt targeting Supreme Court Justice Qazi Faez Isa was a ‘mistake’.

Comment: Scrap reference against Justice Isa

It cannot be said with certainty what prompted this admission of wrongdoing by the ousted prime minister, but it seems it came in response to him being told that a section of the judiciary had been deeply unhappy with his government over its decision to prosecute the respected judge over spurious allegations.

Mr Khan’s admission seems to lack force and conviction, however.

Consider that he has twice complained publicly, to large crowds, of the ‘deep hurt’ caused to him by the simple act of the judiciary “opening its doors at midnight”. On both occasions, he protested: “Had I committed a crime?” On the other hand, his modest penitence for the immense hurt — both reputational and emotional — caused to Justice Isa and his wife, Sarina Isa, has been done from behind closed doors.

Is it hubris that prevents Mr Khan from empathising with Justice Isa as an equal, or is it that he is simply oblivious to the pain caused to the widely respected judge? If he has not already done so, Mr Khan urgently needs to take stock of just how cruelly Justice Isa and his spouse were relentlessly berated and slandered as a result of the defective reference filed against them on the advice of the Prime Minister’s Office. The two were forced to watch a reputation built upon years of service to the country dragged through the mud as sneering commentators and overzealous ‘keyboard warriors’ questioned their integrity and conduct.

Read: Who is Justice Qazi Faez Isa?

Acknowledging his ‘mistake’ behind closed doors to a third party, therefore, is quite an inadequate salve for their wounded pride and mental suffering. If he really is interested in making amends, Mr Khan should at least consider delivering a clear apology publicly and encourage his supporters to do likewise.

Mr Khan would also do well to nurture his rekindled sense of decency by reflecting further on his general contempt for the legal and constitutional structures and norms underpinning Pakistan as a state.

Indeed, the country can only pin its hopes on upright judges such as Justice Qazi Faez Isa to uphold the rule of law when political leaders commit excesses of the kind that Mr Khan is held responsible for. Mr Khan’s note of regret ought to give way to many more expressions of remorse.

Published in Dawn, April 20th, 2022