Positive Options Dwindle Each Day on January 7, 2024Maula Jat and his nemeses Noori Nat are fictional characters in Punjabi folklore glamorized through films spanning decades. Their violent conflict has been verbalized as “Kharak”, an appropriate description of what is unfolding on our national scene. The intensity increases every day leading to an undesirable crescendo. It’s a path to disaster paved intentionally to […]
PUSHING AND SHOVING on December 31, 2023Ruthless pursuit of a goal for greater good is commendable. However, ruthlessness in achieving selfish goals by destroying all values, laws and norms of decency is despicable. That is what we are witnessing everyday; the scenes of mistreatment of Shah Mehmood Qureshi is the freshest wound. The way these depraved pushed and shoved a greatly […]
Electoral Process? on December 24, 2023Halaku (Hulagu) Khan was a Mongol ruler who conquered most of Western Asia, laying the basis for the Persian Empire in the 13th century. He sacked and destroyed Baghdad thereby ending the Islamic Golden Age. According to historians, Halaku had a shock and awe strategy to soften opponents at the start of his campaigns. When […]
Blindfolded and In Shackles on December 17, 202316th December is the 52nd anniversary of the surrender by Pak Army in Dhaka. Quad-e-Azam’s Pakistan was truncated within 25 years of independence. Bengalis, who were 56% of the population, formed their state. I vividly remember the pain we felt at this national humiliation. As president of the Punjab University Student’s Union, a powerful body, […]
Preposterous Claims on December 10, 2023A tweet from Shireen Mazari has gone viral on social media. I will repeat it for those who have not seen it yet. The title reads “Setting the record straight on Founding Members of PTI:” The message states, “The Founding members of PTI were the following: Imran Khan, Naeemul Haque, late Ahsan Rasheed, Hafeez Khan […]
How Low Can One Go? on December 3, 2023With winter creeping in and the onset of snow flurries, both Rakhshanda and I miss our annual jaunt of escaping to Lahore. Many Canadians, especially seniors, have found ways of dodging the harsh winter by setting up a pad in Florida, locally known as “snow birds.” We had that option; instead we chose our homeland. […]
Selfish Agendas and Immoral Means on November 29, 2023I am not a big fan of drama serials. Occasionally, I watch an episode or two to maintain congeniality at home. However, a Pakistani serial, “Jhok Sarkar,” has caught my fancy. I look forward to watching every episode. It revolves around a feudal lord and his family in a remote setting. The underlying theme is […]
Will Arrogance Interfere with the Law? on November 5, 2023So far, arrogance has prevailed since April 2022 and continues unabated. Arrogance, combined with a lack of wisdom, at times bordering on stupidity, is a terrible combination. It has been the order of the day for the last 18 months. The latest re-enactment was during the Interim Prime Minister’s visit to LUMS University; his anger […]
Wheels of Fortune Turn For Crooks on October 22, 2023In a recent talk show, I stated that we have to wait and see which Judge will garland an absconder, convict and accomplished liar, Nawaz Sharif. It happened in broad daylight and the honour goes to none other than Chief Justice Islamabad High Khawaja Aamir Farooq. The same “Honorable” Justice took diametrically opposed positions in […]
Ticking Bomb on October 17, 2023Some people are known to sleep with their eyes wide open. It’s a bewildering sight that takes you aback. But when you discover that your entire ruling elite suffers from that condition, it definitely is scary. It is happening on all fronts; however, I would like to focus on the sharp decline in remittances by […]