Maulana Fazlur Rehman, chief of Pakistan’s Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and a member of the National Assembly, has launched a sharp attack on Field Marshal Asim Munir, accusing the army chief of overstepping constitutional limits and intervening in politics.

Addressing a public gathering in Pakistan’s Punjab on Sunday, Rehman said Munir should quit the uniform and enter electoral politics if he wished to play a political role.

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Politics, if you please, without the uniform

“If you want to do politics, then take off the uniform and come into politics. Contest elections,” Rehman said. Rehman framed the challenge as a test of public support, saying voters would then see “how many votes people in uniform receive.”

Rehman also accused the military of deciding who governs Pakistan, a power he said should remain outside the army’s remit.

“It is not the army’s job to decide who forms the government and who leaves,” he said. He argued the military has the power to install and remove governments but that such decisions do not belong to the armed forces.

Civilian ground, military shadow

The remarks come against the backdrop of growing scrutiny over the military’s role in Pakistan’s political system.

Rehman’s criticism followed the government’s decision to include Asim Munir in a high-level committee on population issues, a move that has fuelled debate over the army’s expanding influence in civilian governance.

Rehman further rejected calls for civilians to take up arms against militant groups, saying security is the responsibility of the state and the armed forces.

He said soldiers are paid to defend the country and criticized the idea of civilians forming militias. “I will not raise a militia,” he said, while warning that such a path could lead to “perpetual violence and bloodshed.”

Is Pakistan’s grip on Balochistan slipping further?

He also painted a bleak picture of the security situation in Balochistan, saying large parts of the province remained outside state control.

Rehman said insurgency in Baloch areas had spread and claimed that the government’s writ did not exist there even now. He also said unrest had widened into Pashtun regions.

The latest exchange adds to a long-running civil-military tension in Pakistan, where the army has historically wielded significant influence over politics, security, and governance.

Rehman’s intervention, delivered in public and directed personally at Munir, places renewed attention on the army chief’s expanding footprint in state affairs.

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FAQs

Q1: Why did Maulana Fazlur Rehman challenge Asim Munir to contest elections?

Maulana Fazlur Rehman said Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir should resign from the military and contest elections if he wants to play a political role.

Q2: What did Fazlur Rehman accuse Pakistan’s military of?

Fazlur Rehman accused Pakistan’s military of interfering in politics and influencing the formation and removal of governments.