After TV fame, Justice Rana Shamim’s son launches ‘Shaan-e-Pakistan’ party

• Ahmad Hassan Rana says his "revolutionary party" will bring “change” that Imran Khan, Benazir Bhutto, and Nawaz Sharif couldn't.
• Says he has set up the group with help of “like-minded” friends who are well-off and well-placed.
• Ahmad became famous after he appeared on TV as the lawyer of his father.

LONDON: Cashing in on his new-found TV fame, former Gilgit Baltistan chief judge Rana Shamim’s son, Ahmad Hassan Rana, has launched his own political party called “Shaan-e-Pakistan” to bring “real change” to Pakistan and make the South Asian nation a real "Madinah Ki Riyasat" (welfare state).

Speaking in London, Ahmad revealed that his "revolutionary party" will aim to bring the “change” that Imran Khan, Benazir Bhutto, and Nawaz Sharif failed to introduce and implement.

Ahmad said that he has set up the group with help of “like-minded” friends who are well-off and well-placed, hard-working, and carry the right kind of intellect.

At present, the newly-formed "revolutionary" party's website exists on WhatsApp but the flamboyant supreme court lawyer said that “Shaan-e-Pakistan” will be launched at the national level soon.

"That will be when the like-minded group has enough funding and resources at their disposal because we don’t want to get trapped like Imran Khan and end up asking others for funds to run the party affairs and the country," he said, adding that he has set up the new party with high objectives to “bring change”.

Ahmad became famous after he appeared on TV as the lawyer of his father after The News published a story based on the affidavit of Justice Rana Shamim, alleging that he saw the former chief justice manipulating the judicial process to keep Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz in jail.

Saqib Nisar has denied the allegations and Justice Rana Shamim instructed a veteran Supreme Court lawyer to represent him, changing his son as his counsel but that has not stopped Ahmed Hassan from appearing on TV on an almost daily basis to talk about the case.

The idea of making the new party occurred to Rana’s after his TV interviews and the feedback he received from his family and friends — both good and bad.

The manifesto of Ahmed's “Shaan-e-Pakistan” will be "nothing extraordinary as it will have everything that all parties already have as far as the manifestos are concerned, making loft promises."

He said: “We will aim to establish Madinah Ki Riyasat with the focus of building an Islamic welfare state with free health care, free education, and ease of doing business." 

"You just cannot talk about it; you have to walk the talk; you have to practically do it and not just keep talking about it. After being in power for over three years, PM Imran Khan says "ghabrana nahee hai" and he says he wants five more years to bring change. This is exactly what Benazir and Nawaz Sharif did that "gave us five more years.”

When asked how he will succeed where others have failed, Ahmad said that he will do it through his “policy” and vision and trusted himself for bringing it. "I trust myself for making it happen."

The Supreme Court lawyer and founder of Shaan-e-Pakistan said he would not join any other party and invited others to join him in his mission.

No one knew Rana Shamim’s son until a few days ago when he was catapulted to the overnight sensation after a blast interview with Shahzeb Khanzada, in which the audience was able to see both a shocking and funny side of former Gilgit Baltistan chief judge’s son.

At that time, Ahmed had appeared on Khanzada’s show as his father’s advocate. His dialogue with the host and revelation that he needed permission from his father to play snooker, not directly but via his wife, initially shocked viewers and then provided them with the much-needed comic relief. 

At another show, his live interview while holding a drink (“apple juice”), offers to sing a song for his wife to end the tiff with her and the live challenge to drink apple juice won him a fan base on social media who could see the lighter side of things.