Wheres the beef? on November 27, 2015During a conversation at a‘soiree’ I attended in Lahore a few months ago, I mentioned the fact that I write for this newspaper. Most of the people had actually heard of this newspaper but what interested them more was what I wrote about. They were surprised to find out that I was not a security […]
Traffic, security roadblocks and signal free roads on November 20, 2015One of the worst things that can happen to an op-ed writer is to have to change the topic of what he or she wishes to write just before the deadline. I had sort of settled on my topic but then I had to drive down to Lahore airport a few hours ago. Having visited […]
PPP in the doldrums on November 13, 2015Where are all the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) supporters in Punjab who once gave Zulfikar Ali Bhutto a political mandate in 1970 and even provided his daughter with significant support in 1988 and thereafter? That is a question often asked these days. As a supporter of the PPP in 1970, who voted for Zulfikar Bhutto […]
Let us call a martyr a martyr on October 23, 2015Today we commemorate the most famous martyr in Muslim history. For Muslims who believe in the sanctity of the Prophet (PBUH) and his immediate family, and accept the commonly presented history of what happened in Karbala more than 1,400 years ago, the martyrdom of Imam Hussain (AS) is indeed an important part of Islamic history. […]
Politics, Pakistan and the US on October 16, 2015Politics in Pakistan are becoming quite boring. Even the results of the recent elections in Lahore were so very predictable. The PML-N was not going to lose that election under any circumstances. At the same time it could not afford to win it too overwhelmingly, so they won it by a mere percentage point or […]
Self-censorship on October 9, 2015At the dawn of the previous democratic interregnum, circa 1990, at a dinner at a friend’s home in Lahore, mostly attended by media types, I was told that one could write almost anything in any newspaper in Pakistan except open criticism of the army, the mullahs and religious excess. I did not take it too […]
Muslims getting bad press on October 2, 2015As I started to write this column, my first inclination was to discuss Pakistani politics. However, two international stories, both of a religious nature, kept intruding into my thoughts. The first was of course the tragic death of hundreds of pilgrims during a Hajj stampede. The second was the address to US Congress by Pope […]
Our precious bodily fluids on September 4, 2015Things are getting bad in Lahore. First the Punjab Food Authority (PFA) told us how bad the food we ate even in pricey restaurants was, then we found out that the supposedly fresh milk we were drinking was neither fresh and probably not even milk. Then came the news that much of the water in […]
End of summer musings on August 28, 2015Good mangoes have disappeared. That means summer is coming to an end. The rains came and are still around but their frequency and ferocity both seem to be on the wane, and the children are back in school. And, yes, the number of weddings going on has diminished considerably. Pakistan will now slowly wake up […]
Why I rarely eat out on August 21, 2015The Pakistan Food Authority (PFA) is doing a marvellous job. I have a few quibbles but these are more about what they are not doing. First, I agree that all those eateries that charge more than Rs 1,000 for an entree should be treated most severely for their lapses. However, there are bad hygienic practices […]