April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Game for the throne: On Imran Khan’s attempts to cling to power

Imran Khan's attempts to cling to power betray his contempt for parliamentary procedures

It was certain that Imran Khan, Pakistan’s Prime Minister, would be ousted in the no-trust vote. The
Opposition had put up a united face. His allies had jumped ship, reducing the ruling coalition to a
minority. His party lawmakers had revolted against him. The cricketer-turned-PM’s defeat was a
matter of formality in a country where no Prime Minister has completed their term. On Sunday, the
Deputy Speaker dismissed the no-trust motion, calling it against the Constitution, which was followed
by Mr. Khan’s formal request to the President to dissolve the National Assembly. Pakistan will have to
hold elections in three months, provided there is no judicial intervention. There were three bad
options before Mr. Khan: resignation, no-trust vote or early elections. By choosing elections, he
avoided a humiliating defeat and also sought to torpedo the Opposition’s bid to form a government
for the remainder of the current Parliament’s term. Before the National Assembly convened, Mr.
Khan had set the campaign pitch by accusing the Opposition of conspiring with a foreign power (an
indirect reference to the U.S.) to unseat him. The current crisis would also allow him to play the
victim of some foreign conspiracy and seek a fresh mandate. But the question is what price does
Pakistan pay for his political manoeuvring? The conspiracy theories, the dismissal of the no-trust
motion and the call for early elections all suggest Mr. Khan’s contempt for parliamentary procedures
and basic democratic decency.

For the labyrinth he is in today, Mr. Khan has to blame nobody but himself. Having been a political
underdog for years, he broke into Pakistan’s two-party political order in 2018 with the direct support
of the military. His cocktail of religious conservatism, nationalism and anti-corruption crusade
promised to build a ‘Naya Pakistan’. But while in power, he made three critical mistakes:
mismanagement of the economy, mismanagement of his ties with the military, and full-spectrum
hostility with the Opposition. His vindictive approach towards the Opposition brought together all the
major Opposition parties, which tried to cash in on the growing public resentment amid economic
woes. Cracks in the government’s relationship with the military began appearing last year when Mr.
Khan reportedly sparred with the establishment over the appointment of the new ISI chief. His visit
to Moscow in February, immediately after Russia’s Ukraine invasion, and the “neutral” policy his
government adopted regarding the conflict seem to have quickened his fall. Last week, the Army
chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, spoke against the Russian invasion and re-emphasised the
importance of Pakistan’s ties with the U.S. in a public rebuke of Mr. Khan’s pragmatism. Now, out of
favour with the military, a lost majority in Parliament and faced with anger amid a worsening
economic crisis, the ‘Captain’ does not have any good options before him. With his back against the
wall, what he is doing for political survival is only weakening Pakistan’s non-military institutions and
subverting its democratic proceedings. [Practice Exercise]

 Red/blue coloring of words in the sentence indicates subject verb relationship; where ‘Red’
denotes ‘subject’ and ‘blue’ denotes ‘verb’.

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 1
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Vocabulary
1. Throne (noun) – Power, authority, rule, 12. Ruling (adjective) – Presiding, reigning,
dominion:; seat, / governing, dominant, sovereign

2. Cling (to) (verb) – hold on to, clutch, grip, 13. Coalition (noun) – Alliance, union,
grasp, clasp, attach oneself to, , partnership, Federation, merger

14. Lawmaker (noun) – A legislator.

3. Betray (verb) – Reveal, disclose, leak, tell,
15. Revolt (verb) – rebel, rise up, rise, take to
divulge, show accidentally
the streets, take up arms
4. Contempt (noun) – Disdain, dislike,
16. A matter of (phrase) – A thing that
disrespect, disapproval, scorn, hatred
involves or depends on.
,
17. Term (noun) – Tenure, period, stretch,
5. Certain (adjective) – Sure, clear, evident,
duration, time
guaranteed
18. Dismiss (verb) – reject, deny, repudiate,
6. Oust (verb) – Exile, overthrow, eject, expel,
spurn
throw out, force out
19. Motion (noun) – Proposal, suggestion,
7. No-trust vote (noun) – A vote of no
submission, recommendation
confidence is a vote in which members of a
group are asked to indicate that they do 20. Follow (verb) – Happen after (something
not support the person or group in power else) as a consequence.
8. Put up (phrasal verb) – nominate, propose,
21. Dissolve (verb) – disband, disestablish,
put forward, recommend
dismiss
9. United (adjective) – Joint, combined,
22. Hold (verb) – Organize, convene, conduct
cohesive, integrated, aggregate

10. Ally (noun) – Supporter, partner,

23. Provided (conjunction) – If, providing, on
confederate, associate
condition that, only if, as long as, in case
11. Jump ship (phrase) – Abscond, leave, do a
bunk
24. Judicial (adjective) – Legal, court, justice,
jurisdictional

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 2
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

25. Intervention (noun) – Interference, 36. Unseat (verb) – Depose, oust, overthrow,
involvement, intrusion, intercession dethrone, remove

37. Play the victim (phrase) – To act as a

26. Humiliating (adjective) – Chastening, victim in order to gain sympathy
humbling, embarrassing, mortifying,
38. Seek (verb) – ask for, request, solicit, call
shameful, demeaning
on
27. Seek (verb) – Try, attempt, endeavour
39. Mandate (noun) – the authority given by
an electorate to someone acting as its
28. Torpedo (verb) – Ruin, destroy, wreck, representative
spoil, thwart
40. Pay the price (phrase) – to experience the
bad result of something you have done
29. Bid (noun) – Attempt, try, effort, endeavor

41. Manoeuvre (verb) – Carefully guide or

30. Remainder (noun) – Balance, leftover, rest,
manipulate (someone or something) in
residue ,
order to achieve an end.
31. National Assembly (noun) – Legislative
42. Dismissal (noun) – rejection, repudiation,
assembly of Pakistan
refusal, repulse, non-acceptance
32. Convene (verb) – Assemble, summon,
organize, arrange 43. Call for (phrasal verb) – require, need,
necessitate, make necessary, demand
33. Set the pitch/tone (phrase) – create or
establish a general feeling or atmosphere
among a group of people (about a
44. Decency (noun) – respectability, dignity,
particular subject):
correctness, good form, etiquette,

34. Accuse (of) (verb) – Blame, indict, allege,

45. Labyrinth (noun) – complexity, confusion,
fault, reproach, censure, denunciate
complication, entanglement

46. Underdog (noun) – weaker party, loser,

35. Conspire (verb) – plot, hatch a plot, form a
conspiracy, scheme, plan

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 3
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM
47. For years (phrase) – for a long time
48. Break into (phrasal verb) – to begin being
successful in a particular type of work or
activity
49. Cocktail (noun) – Concoction, mixture,
blend, combination, mix
50. Conservatism (noun) – the holding of
political views that favour free enterprise,
private ownership, and socially traditional
ideas.
51. Nationalism (noun) – advocacy of or
support for the political independence of a
particular nation or people.
52. Crusade (noun) – Campaign, movement,
action
53. Mismanagement (noun) – Misconduct,
mishandling, negligence,
maladministration
54. Spectrum (noun) – Range, band, gamut,
scale, field
55. Hostility (noun) – Aggression, anger,
unfriendliness, antagonism, resentment,
opposition, enmity
56. Vindictive (adjective) – Unforgiving,
revengeful, rancorous, vengeful,
implacable, resentful, bitter, ruthless
Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in
Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077
57. Cash in on (phrase) – Take advantage,
benefit, do well from, exploit, make the
most of
58. Resentment (noun) – Anger, bitterness,
dislike, hatred, antipathy,
59. Amid (preposition) – Among, within,
during, in the middle of
60. Woe (noun) – trouble, difficulty, problem,
trial, tribulation, burden
61. Crack (noun) – split, fissure, crevice, break,
fracture, rupture
62. Reportedly (adverb) – supposedly,
seemingly, apparently, allegedly
63. Spar (verb) – quarrel, argue, have a fight,
have a row, row, fight,
64. The establishment (noun) – Here it refers
to ‘Pakistan Military’.
65. Invasion (noun) – attack, incursion,
offensive, assailing, assault, onslaught
66. Neutral (adjective) – impartial, unbiased,
unprejudiced, objective, without
favouritism,
67. Fall (noun) – downfall, ruin, ruination,
collapse, failure, decline
68. Public (adjective) – open, in the public eye
Page 4
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

69. Rebuke (noun) – reprimand, reproach,
reproof, scolding, admonishment,
/
70. Pragmatism (noun) – A pragmatic/practical
attitude or policy.
71. Out of favour (phrase) – no longer
desirable or preferred by someone
73. The captain (noun) – Here it refers to
“Imran Khan’.
74. Back against the wall (phrase) – to be in a
tough situation with limited options
75. Subvert (verb) – Undermine, overthrow,
destabilize, disrupt, sabotage

72. Worsening (adjective) – Deteriorating,

falling, fading, waning, getting worse

Click here to download all such PDFs

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 5
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Practice Exercise
Direction (Q1 – Q3): Select the best express synonym of the highlighted words [Editorial]
1. Imran Khan's attempts to cling to power betray his contempt for parliamentary procedures
A. Acrid
B. Divulge
C. Edify
D. Magnate
2. By choosing elections, he avoided a humiliating defeat and also sought to torpedo the
Opposition’s bid to form a government for the remainder of the current Parliament’s term.
A. Qualify
B. Recant
C. Extol
D. Ruin
3. The dismissal of the no-trust motion and the call for early elections all suggest Mr. Khan’s
contempt for parliamentary procedures and basic democratic decency.
A. Morality
B. Intractable
C. Perennial
D. Saccharine
Direction (Q4 – Q5): Select the antonym of the highlight word referred in the sentence.
4. Having been a political underdog for years, he broke into Pakistan’s two-party political order in
2018 with the direct support of the military.
A. Noxious
B. Favorite
C. Adulation
D. Explicit
5. His vindictive approach towards the Opposition brought together all the major Opposition
parties, which tried to cash in on the growing public resentment amid economic woes.
A. Disdain
B. Onerous
C. Promulgate
D. Merciful
Direction (Q6 – Q10): Spot the grammatical error in the given sentence [Answer]
6. The thief escaped (A)/ from the prison two (B)/ days after he were (C)/ arrested by the police.
(D)/ No Error. (E)
7. They managed to (A)/ retrieve all the (B)/ deleted e-mails with the (C)/ helping of a new
software. (D)/ No Error. (E)
8. She was not a (A)/ good singer but she (B)/ danced better than (C)/ any of us. (D)/ No Error. (E)
9. Only the problem was that (A)/ she had submitted (B)/ a photocopy of the document (C)/
instead of the original (D)/ No Error. (E)

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 6
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

10. Most of the (A)/ guests at the party (B)/ were praise the excellent (C)/ arrangements made by
the host. (D)/ No Error. (E)
Cloze test based on Editorial: Quota and data [Answer]
The Court’s decision has provided relief to many by holding that the State is ______11_______ to
design sub-classification among backward classes; prescribe the quantum of reservation based on
such sub-classification, and formulate an _______12________ law, even with the assent of the
Governor, to one included in the Ninth Schedule. Regardless of further moves by the DMK
government that had defended the law in the Supreme Court, this _______13________ has important
lessons. No community should be allowed internal or exclusive reservation without making a case for
it on the basis of quantifiable data. A caste-based census can help in determining the representation
of various communities in public employment and in education. After all, it is adequate representation
that holds the ______14________ for the special treatment of reservation.
11. A. Competent B. Amorphous
C. Profound D. Prosaic

12. A. Diffident B. Ancillary

C. Exhaustive D. Subtle

13. A. Mendicant B. Cadence

C. Episode D. Metamorphosis

14. A. Key B. Heresy

C. Sacrilege D. Complicity

15. Para Jumble based on Editorial: Quota and data

P. The Act had envisaged the distribution of the 20% quota for Most Backward Classes (MBC)
and De-notified Communities (DNCs) in education and public employment by assigning 10.5%
to Vanniyars or
Q. the aspect of internal reservation for one community — Vanniyars — had created the
impression of special treatment.
R. the Vanniyakula Kshatriya community, 7% for 25 MBCs and 68 DNCs, and 2.5% for the
remaining 22 MBCs.
S. The Supreme Court has rightly quashed the Tamil Nadu Special Reservation Act of 2021, or
the Vanniyar quota law, on the ground that it was not based on updated quantifiable data.
T. Even though a superficial look at the law would give an impression that not just the
Vanniyars but also 115 other communities have been covered,
A. PQTSR B. RPQTS C. PTQSR D.SPRTQ

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 7
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Answer
1. B 2. D 3. A 4. B 5. D 6.C 7.D 8.E 9.A 10.C 11.A 12.B 13.C
14. A 15. D [Practice Exercise] [Cloze test]
Explanation
6. (C) 'were' 'was' Subject ―he' Third Person Singular
Number Pronoun
7. (D) 'helping' 'help' 'with + somebody/ something'
; -
i. I did this work with the help of my friends.
ii. She usually comes here with John.
8. (E) no error.
9. (A) ―only' 'problem' ' only'
; -
i. Only she helped these children.
ii. The only boy I know here is Rohan.
10. (C) 'praise' 'praising' 'Be + V4‖ Continuous Tense ,
औ 'were + V '4
'were praising‖ Past Continuous Tense
11. Competent (to) (adjective) – capable, able, proficient, adept, adroit ,
12. Ancillary (adjective) – additional, auxiliary, supporting, helping, assisting, extra
13. Episode (noun) – incident, event, occurrence, happening
14. Hold the key (phrase) – to have control of something
15. The Supreme Court has rightly quashed the Tamil Nadu Special Reservation Act of
2021, or the Vanniyar quota law, on the ground that it was not based on updated
quantifiable data. The Act had envisaged the distribution of the 20% quota for Most
Backward Classes (MBC) and De-notified Communities (DNCs) in education and
public employment by assigning 10.5% to Vanniyars or the Vanniyakula Kshatriya
community, 7% for 25 MBCs and 68 DNCs, and 2.5% for the remaining 22 MBCs.
Even though a superficial look at the law would give an impression that not just the
Vanniyars but also 115 other communities have been covered, the aspect of internal
reservation for one community — Vanniyars — had created the impression of special
treatment.

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 8
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Explanation in English
6. (C) 'was' will be used instead of 'were' because its subject 'he' is a Pronoun of Third
Person Singular Number.
7. (D) 'help' will be used instead of 'helping' because 'with + somebody/ something' is
used; like-
i. I did this work with the help of my friends.
ii. She usually comes here with John.
8. (E) no error.

9. (A) 'only' shall be preceded by 'problem' because 'only' is generally used immediately
before the word to which it refers; like-

i. Only she helped these children.

ii. The only boy I know here is Rohan.
10. (C) 'praising' will be used instead of 'praise' because 'Be + V 4' forms Continuous
Tense, and if 'were + V4' is used in the question then 'were praising' will form Past
Continuous Tense.

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 9
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Explanation of other important words

Sr.NO Words Meanings
Q1 Acrid adjective Harsh like acid , ,

Edify adjective To enlighten; instruct, especially in moral

or religious matter
Magnate noun Rich, powerful or very successful business
person
Q2 Qualify verb To modify or restrict

Recant verb To publicly take back and deny

(something previously said or believed);
to openly confess error.
Extol verb To praise highly; to laud ,

Q3 Intractable adjective Uncontrollable; stubborn; disobedient

Perennial adjective Continual; happening again and again or

year after year
Saccharine adjective Sweet; excessively or disgustingly sweet ,

Q4 Noxious adjective Harmful; offensive

Adulation noun Wild or excessive administration flattery ,

Explicit adjective Clearly and directly expressed , ,

Q5 Disdain noun Arrogant scorn; contempt , ,

Onerous adjective Burdensome; oppressive

Promulgate verb To proclaim; to publicly or formally

declare something
Q11 Shapeless; without a regular or stable
Amorphous adjective ,
shape; blob like
Profound adjective Deep (in several cases)
Dull; unimaginative; like prose (as
Prosaic adjective
opposed to poetry)
Q12 , ,
Diffident adjective Timid; lacking in self confidence

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 10
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Thorough; rigorous; complete; , ,

Exhaustive adjective
painstaking
Not obvious; able to make fine
Subtle adjective
distinction; ingenious; crafty
Q13
Mendicant noun A beggar

Cadence noun Rhythm; the rise and fall of sounds ,

A magical change in form; a striking or
Metamorphosis noun
sudden change
Q15 Any belief that is strongly opposed to ,
Heresy noun
established belief.
A violation of something sacred;
Sacrilege noun
blasphemy
Participation in wrongdoing; the act of ,
Complicity noun
being an accomplice

Click here to download all such PDFs

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 11
 April 6, 2022 JOIN TELEGRAM CHANNEL: ENGLISH MADHYAM

Join us on Telegram channel: English Madhyam, Email Id: Support@englishmadhyam.in

Website: www.englishmadhyam.in, Phone number: 7722987077 Page 12