Daily Times

I am not sure if the state’s official three-day mourning period was for late Governor Salmaan Taseer or for its own paralysis. As it has been reported, Taseer’s martyrdom — that is what it is — was pre-planned and well rehearsed before the day Qadri stole the innocent man’s life, yet no intelligence agency could detect it. If the security agencies are as pervasive and involved in the system as they purport, such a mission could not have gone undetected unless the security apparatus itself is infested with extremists. Either way, the security agencies have proven to be an extension of mullah shahi (rule of the mullahs) and, hence, a fundamentalist party themselves. Indeed, the martyrdom of Salmaan Taseer was foretold by the increasingly fundamentalist security body, which has imposed a toxic ideology amongst the unsuspecting people of Pakistan.

In a way it was a murder foretold, as Garcia Marquez would call it. As every colour and every shade of mullah shahi was issuing fatwas (edicts) against Taseer for supporting Aasia Bibi and branding the blasphemy law as a kala qanoon (black law) — which it is — the state agencies remained silent spectators. How can a private group issue a death sentence when Pakistan is ruled by the constitution and the courts are appointed to protect the people and persecute wrongdoers? And, if mullah shahi can issue death fatwas against citizens, then we should all wonder what the function of the state is. In order to bring Pakistan out of its current state of chaos, fatwa declarations should be banned like they were in Bangladesh and their writers should be put behind bars for sedition.

The anti-Tasser/Aasia Bibi campaign was not limited to fatwas; many mullahs and illiterate and rich politicians and businessmen were offering head money for the death of these two people. A mullah in a Peshawar mosque during a Friday gathering had offered a huge sum of money for Aasia Bibi’s head. Another petty politician in southern Punjab had offered Rs 2 crores for Taseer’s and Aasia’s heads. Were these not extreme cases of blatant hate speech? But the state agencies looked the other way. Even now, the state agencies have no will or intention to bring these criminals to book for their wrongdoings. For example, they arrested the above-mentioned petty politician and released him after his supporters blockaded the highway. So, it is clear that the state’s security agencies lack the will to enforce the law or they are too cowardly to do so.

The fact of the matter is that Pakistan is being run by two sets of parallel state institutions. One is the formal state, which hires people to run its business according to written laws and the constitution. The other is an informal state, comprised of entities like mullah shahi who dictate social laws from mosques and monasteries, and the corrupt elite that plunders the masses through economic exploitation. These two sets of states intersect each other but operate independently as well. And if the informal state is to continue destroying the formal state without any action by the state, Pakistan is destined for destruction.

It seems that mullah shahi has taken over most functions as far as social life is concerned. The formal state either abets mullah shahi’s dictates or backs off when a confrontation develops between these two. Usually, mullah shahi has the last word on almost every matter that is a matter of concern to it. No political party, even the so-called non-religious parties, has the courage to demand enforcement and assertion of the formal state’s legitimate legal power. In fact, most parties are keen to please mullah shahi to grab or maintain power of the formal state.

The corrupt elite, which is running the formal or informal state, is either not bothered by mullah shahi or provides funds to it. In reality, mullah shahi has provided the corrupt an incredible cover by distracting people from the most important issues. However, after Taseer’s martyrdom, the elite may have some second thoughts. Now they may be scared of their own bodyguards because they are most likely indoctrinated by mullah shahi; these guards or domestic servants may not like their late night, elaborate parties, they may get upset and kill a few of the guests as well. Probably, the elite will realise that now mullah shahi has infected and emboldened their serving class, which they previously took for granted.

However, the elite’s fear of mullah shahi is not going to change the situation in a meaningful way. Unless the anti-mullah shahi forces become competitive, the tide of theocracy cannot be stopped. To be competitive, anti-mullah shahi forces have to capture the intellectual discourse in the country and even have the street power to stop the religious madness. If the liberal intelligentsia is hoping that the formal state will reform itself and come to their aid, they are delusionary. The state is nothing but a compromise of interest groups. If anti-mullah shahi forces are not strong enough to be at the negotiating table through enough popular support, they should not expect much.

Mullah shahi’s onslaught has eroded every institution in Pakistan. From personal safety to education and health, every service has been adversely affected. Therefore, the good-hearted people who are providing educational or health services on a small scale must realise that without challenging the mullah’s toxic rhetoric, their efforts will go to waste because the mullah will attack them regardless of their innocence. Therefore, the need is to organise anti-mullah shahi to a level where Pakistan’s institutions can be rehabilitated and the country can become a genuine member of the civilised world. Just mourning Salmaan Taseer’s death is not going to do this; we must first realise that his heinous murder was foretold by the rising tide of fanaticism amongst both the people and security agencies.

The writer can be reached at manzurejaz@yahoo.com