The trial and execution of Bhutto on April 5, 2021The 4th of April brings back the painful memories of the farce trial and judicial murder of an iconic son of Pakistan – Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Bhutto after his exit from the Ayub Cabinet had emerged the most popular leader after Quaid e Azam and, notwithstanding his unfulfilled promises with the masses, had genuinely earned […]
PDM sans PPP on March 22, 2021The jolt, the 10-party PDM received on 16 March from the hard and blunt talk of the PPP supremo Asif Ali Zardari, was more severe than all the previous shocks in its 157-day journey on the thorny path of Pakistani politics. The uneasycoalition of so many parties with divergent agendas and cross purposes, hasnegligible political […]
Nervously waiting for signals from Washington on March 20, 2021We have written many columns on Pakistan’s place in the priorities of the Biden Administration. All these writings by finer minds have spared no factor- economic, political or strategic, no issue –regional or international, and no condition – internal or external – that may likely impact the future relations between the two countries. There were […]
Foreign policy challenges ahead on March 10, 2021With Joe Biden still engaged in recalibrating US relations with various countries, and Prime Minister Imran Khan awaiting his telephonic call, the concerns, priorities and nuances of the American foreign policy are becoming clear in bits and pieces particularly in South and South West Asia, South East Asia and Pacific and the Middle East. It […]
The Pawri has just begun on March 3, 2021The recent decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan to annul the entire election in the Daska constituency (NA75) and the Supreme Court’s verdict to leave the secret balloting in the Senate elections intact as laid down in the relevant constitutional articles directing the ECP to take all necessary precautionary measures to ensure honesty, fairness […]
Foreign policy challenges ahead on March 2, 2021With Joe Biden still engaged in recalibrating US relations with various countries, and Prime Minister Imran Khan awaiting his telephonic call, the concerns, priorities and nuances of the American foreign policy are becoming clear in bits and pieces particularly in South and South West Asia, South East Asia and Pacific and the Middle East. It […]
The disappointing administrative reforms – II on February 24, 2021The attack on public servants in 1969 and onwards to turn them into pliant subordinates of the ruling elite particularly after the so called administrative reforms introduced by the first PPP government dispensing with the security of service and tenure had a cumulative adverse impact on the performance of bureaucrats. The Federal Public Service Commission, […]
The disappointing administrative reforms on February 22, 2021The bureaucracy is the spinal cord of any government – democratic, autocratic, monarchy or military. It is recognized as the permanent government for it is the custodian of the record, documents and data as laid down in the rules of business and accords continuity to the state policies and programmes irrespective of the nature, complexion […]
Is the Middle East bracing for further turmoil? on February 19, 2021The Middle East paints the pre-First World War chaotic scene of Europe when the states of the continent were engaged in shaking out of the then precariously maintained balance of power and readying to assert their nationalist authority by rebalancing and provoking strategic alliances. The revolt against the status quo in the continental politics led […]
The hour of reckoning for Sindhis – (Part III) on February 12, 2021The predicament of Sindh is not too complex to be understood. It is easily identifiable, and has been identified many times. Thousands of written words go into the vernacular papers every day begging for remedy to the woes of this land; battles have been fought in legal fields; court decisions on urgent matters obtained. All […]