D Asghar

There is an age-old Urdu saying that, if translated into my utterly poor English, would sound like this:“A false statement is devoid of any feet.” It is unable to move orrun. The simple meaning would be that a made-up statement without any substance cannot stand fact checks and will eventually be proven as such. The […]

Growing up on the mean streets of Karachi, a certain, impactful sentence would make the rounds in its original form, “Paisa bari hi gandi cheez hai; iss ki chamak achay achon ko baawla ker daiti hai.” The translation goes like this, “Money is a very dirty thing because its sparkle impairs the senses of many […]

Being an extremely sinful person, perhaps overwhelmed and overburdened by the huge load of his sins, all I can say is that it is quite a hefty load to carry. With each passing day a terrifying feeling engulfs one’s thoughts. This journey is going to come to its logical ending. What do I have on […]

The party of the people, commonly known as the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), is going through a huge transformation. No one can deny the significance of its vital role in shaping politics and the meaning of democracy in this country. It stands tall because of the sacrifices and hardships its members have endured at the […]

Not very long ago, we were subjected to two sermons each night from a cleric-cum-reformer and a green politician-cum-former cricketer. Both were enjoying the prime time slot on the idiot box and those who yak for a living on that box were crying hoarse over the “revolutionary change” that these puppets of the invisible masters […]

I hold people who can figure out the politics of the Middle East in the highest regard. It is one of the most bizarre, mysterious and volatile regions. It is often in a state of chaos and, quite frankly, involved in some fruitless conflicts between quarrelling neighbours. I have very limited knowledge and understanding of […]

The National ‘Inaction’ Plan (NIP) has been in full force since the tragic incident at Peshawar’s Army Public School (APS). Talk is relatively cheap and in abundant supply in the land of the pure. The only noteworthy action that was seen was speedy execution of the convicts who tried to assassinate the former president, chief […]

It was interesting to see the hashtags on Twitter in the wake of a recent terror attack in France. For an ignorant person like myself, it was noteworthy that people were demonstrating their solidarity with the publication Charlie Hebdo. The trending hashtag was #IamCharlie. I must admit that I did not know that such a […]

I hope you remember the term “cautious pessimism”, when it came to the much-repeated phrases of “national consensus” and everyone being on the “same page”. Call me whatever, but I could sense and see through the fog of sudden shock. It was more of a momentary reaction after such an enormous tragedy. The people on […]

It is encouraging to know that the most popular television network in Pakistan has what it calls its internal “code of ethics”. However, merely posting an apology on its website acknowledging that a guest on its very popular morning show, Subah-e-Pakistan (Pakistani morning), hosted by the ‘legendary’ religious ‘scholar’ cum entertainer Dr (pun intended) Aamir […]