Your character is loose indeed: OKB slams Nabil Gabol after latter's comparison with Imran Khan

Gabol shared that when he does certain things, he is criticised when the ex-Prime Minister is not

Pakistani politician Nabil Gabol is under fire yet again. This time around, it is due to his “clarifications,” (or lack thereof) for his comments trivialising rape and joking about being able to “take” whomever he wants. 

The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) member took to Twitter to share quotes from the TIME Magazine article about former premier Imran Khan, lamenting over the fact that when he does certain things, he is criticised, when the ex-Prime Minister is not.

“Hum kare tu saala charecter deela hai (If we do it, our character is loose),” he began in a tweet. “This is what Time Magazine says about Imran Khan. I am surprised. Not a single person, such as Fifi Haroon, Munizae Jahangir, Sharmila Faruqi, Frieha Altaf, and Aurat March organisers, said anything against Khan. I think I need to lose weight and look handsome like Khan and become ladla (privileged son) so that no one criticises me.”

The excerpts quoted from the interview in the magazine stated things such as “the debonair playboy who grew devout; the privileged son who rails against the corrupt; the humanist who stands with the bloodthirsty.” Another highlighted part read, “His youth was spent carousing with supermodels in London’s trendiest nightspots.” 

Khan’s comments on the Taliban breaking “the shackles of slavery by taking back power” were also put in the spotlight, with the author claiming that he insisted it was all “taken out of context.” Furthermore, Khan stating, “If a woman is wearing very few clothes, it will have an impact on the men, unless they’re robots,” was also a part of the screenshot shared by Gabol.

Hum kare tu saala charecter deela hai …. This is what Time magazine say about Imran khan .Iam surprised not a single person such as @FifaHaroon or @MunizaeJahangir or @sharmilafaruqi or @farehaaltaf and Aurat march organisers said anything against khan . I think i need to lose… pic.twitter.com/j4YHCd6eH1

— Nabil Gabol (@Nabilgabol) April 5, 2023

The tone-deaf and factually inaccurate tweet was met with severe backlash. One of the people who spoke up was actor Osman Khalid Butt. Penning his thoughts as four points, the Baaji star wrote, “There was an incredible uproar over Khan sahab’s comments. Comparing your actions/words with someone else’s doesn’t absolve you, it is literally the weakest argument. You don’t need to lose weight, sir, you need to lose your misogynistic, sexist and vile language. Character waqai dheela hai, please thora kheech ke rakhen (your character is, indeed, loose. Please keep it together).”

1. There was an incredible uproar over Khan saab’s comments.
2. Comparing your actions/words with someone else’s doesn’t absolve you, it is literally the 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴𝘵 argument.
3. You don’t need to lose weight, sir, you need to lose your misogynistic, sexist and vile language. https://t.co/hxvRldcoqR

— Osman Khalid Butt (@aClockworkObi) April 5, 2023

4. Character waqai dheela hai, please thora kheech ke rakhen.

— Osman Khalid Butt (@aClockworkObi) April 5, 2023

Even actor Amna Ilyas took to her Instagram story to state, “Instead of losing weight, please go for a total brain cleanse.”

All of this comes after Gabol appeared on several podcasts, passing a bunch of misogynistic remarks. His clip from the podcast, The Pakistan Experience, has especially gone viral. “There is a saying in English, ‘If rape is imminent, just enjoy it,” says Gabol. When the host, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh, tells him there is no such saying, he doubles down on his claim, suggesting that it is, in fact, a saying.

“If you’re so helpless that you can endure rape, then just enjoy it,” he maintains. “Otherwise, if you have any shame, you stand your ground and don’t endure it. When we endure it, we get used. How do you get used? I don’t believe in this thing that you have been forced,” Gabol goes on to assert. “If you’re being forced, stand your ground – raise your voice. You can stand against it. What’s the worst that can happen? You’ll go to jail?” adds the PPP member.

PPP has since issued a show-cause notice to the former member of the National Assembly (MNA) for these comments.

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