Nisar Ahmad

The ordinary person forms opinions under the influence of electronic and social media. That is why it is better to stop blaming PTI’s ordinary workers or supporters. In 2005 or 2006 there was no social media, but when the state and the establishment were quietly promoting the Taliban in Swat, some religious figures began holding Quran lessons and preaching sessions using loudspeakers mounted on mosques. These activities were outside the legal framework. One example was the Panjpiri cleric from Binawria village who became locally popular and later emerged as an important figure among the Taliban. Around the same time, FM radio stations were set up in different areas, broadcasting twenty four hours a day. Small radios were imported from China in bulk, and soon they were everywhere, from streets and neighborhoods to people’s pockets. None of this could have happened without unofficial state support, and this entire environment created a new atmosphere whose consequences everyone has seen...

  There is a strong case for dividing Khyber Pakhtunkhwa into two separate regions based on current conditions and its historical background.  One part should be called Northern Pakhtunkhwa and the other Southern Pakhtunkhwa. Both regions have shared a Pakhtun identity through history, but in reality two very different and often contrasting communities live here. Their culture, language, tone, way of thinking, standards of right and wrong and overall way of life are all quite different from each other. In my view the dividing line between these two regions should either be the Kohat Tunnel or the boundary of Peshawar. Both points can reasonably serve as the marker that separates the two distinct zones.

A city’s story where boundaries are fading I remember that between 2000 and 2008, an unusual change came over Mingora. During those years the number of transgender people in the city increased, and at night dance gatherings began to take place in different hujras and hotels. After Maghrib and Isha, it became normal to see decorated rickshaws, large vehicles and street corners filled with such scenes. This was during Musharraf’s era. The media was promoting a kind of unrestrained liberalism and “enlightened moderation” that seemed aimed at pleasing the West and the United States to strengthen his rule. The major cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were also affected and Mingora did not remain safe from this wave. It was a time that could be called liberal extremism, and in reaction, religious extremism also surged. Society became trapped between these two extremes and slipped into deeper disorder. During those years, dance CDs featuring Nargis, Deedar and other performers in Lahore were spre...

It has been four months since the trade ban on Afghanistan was imposed. Pakistan had placed a ban on Afghanistan for the first time in 1960 when, on the orders of Sardar Daoud Khan, the Afghan army attacked the Bajaur region. After the Afghan forces failed in Bajaur, Daoud Khan continued his aggressive policy, which led Pakistan to sever diplomatic ties with Afghanistan and shut down Afghan transit trade. This crippled Kabul’s economy and pushed Afghanistan into global isolation. King Zahir Shah was the ruler of Afghanistan at that time, and he openly disliked Daoud Khan’s policies. Zahir Shah was a moderate leader who always tried to maintain Afghanistan’s traditional neutrality. He feared that the country might fully fall into the communist bloc. He wanted better relations with Pakistan, which is why during the 1965 and 1971 Pakistan–India wars, he adopted a positive and non-hostile stance toward Pakistan. This proved to be a major help for Pakistan. In July 1973, when ...

Reading is not just an act. It is a journey that carries you towards the quiet space within yourself. Books become a mirror that shows you who you truly are. They reveal your strengths and expose your weaknesses. The book Fareb-e-Naatamaam , written by Juma Khan Sufi, is once again on my table these days. Sufi is a figure who lived through history from the front row. He spent years in self-imposed exile in Kabul alongside Ajmal Khattak, remained close to every Afghan ruler from Sardar Daud to Dr. Najib, and served as a link between the ANP leadership and the Afghan, Indian and Soviet governments. During those years, he was not only an eyewitness but also an active organizer of the ANP’s activities from Kabul. Afghan governments benefited from his services and even the Soviet Union regarded him as an important man, trained by the Communist Party itself. With this background, the importance of his book becomes clear. Fareb-e-Naatamaam is the testimony of someone who saw history unfold...

Pakistan has always repeated its own mistakes, and every time it has been Pakistan itself that suffered in the end. After the defeat of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan, a joint government of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Professor Rabbani was formed. To weaken that government, the Pakistani establishment used Nawaz Sharif as a tool, and the government fell. Later, in 1992 during Benazir Bhutto’s time, the plan for the Taliban was introduced. The real problem was that the Pakistani and American establishments were afraid of communist ideas, but they were also afraid of the Afghan leaders who followed the Muslim Brotherhood style of thinking. Many educated young people from colleges and universities supported Hekmatyar, and this worried both Pakistan and the United States. Because of this fear, a new group called the Taliban was created so that the government would fall into the hands of strict and rigid religious elements who would not threaten establishment interests. Then, during Musharra...