With this book, the distinguished Pakistani journalist Babar Ayaz joins the galaxy of Pakistani writers, such as Pervez Hoodbhoy,
Saleem Shahzad, Ahmed Rashid and Khalid Ahmed, who have articulated in print their deep concerns about the path their country has taken and their fears about its future. This trend in Pakistani writing has been apparent over the last 10 years, possibly in response to the proliferation of jihadi elements across their country, the bloody and unabated sectarian violence, and the near-total collapse of governance. Mr Ayaz, appropriately, dedicates his work to the victims of terrorism.
In his analysis of Pakistan's malaise, Mr Ayaz has perhaps gone well beyond other Pakistani writers in identifying the "two-nation theory", the basis on which Pakistan was created, as a "genetic defect". This theory, he argues, was propounded by the Muslim elite in undivided India who feared that their privileged position would be diluted in a democratic order. So they pursued the Pakistan project by exploiting the religious feelings of the masses. But they based their propaganda on a false reading of Indian history, postulating a deep divide between Hindus and Muslims across the centuries so that, in their view, at the beginning of the 20th century, two separate civilisations had come to exist side by side in India. However, at the outset, there were contradictions in this project: Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who was entirely Westernised in his personal life, led the Pakistan movement - and, after achieving it, spoke of a "secular" entity in which all communities would live together in peace. He was very different from Muhammad Iqbal, who had inspired the movement with his philosophy and poetry founded on an Islamic vision that drew no distinction between the state and religion.
Over the years, the founding father's vision has been rejected by Pakistan's successive rulers, the first of whom was General Zia ul-Haq, whose dictatorship was based on an unabashed commitment to the Islamisation of Pakistan's polity. He introduced laws and practices, such as the anti-Ahmadiyya enactments and blasphemy laws, that effectively took away from the country the ameliorating balm of love and mutual respect in its religious order and replaced it with hate and violence. Today, as Mr Ayaz has noted, the country is infested with religious militancy - 12,500 madrassas across the country tutor 1.6 million students with an archaic syllabus that preaches intolerance and animosity for non-Muslims, and even for Muslims from non-Sunni sects.
Mr Ayaz has devoted considerable space to the armed forces' domination of governance in Pakistan. They justify their privileged position in the country as defenders of the "Fortress of Islam". In their training at various levels, the soldiers have a mindset of jihad consciously ingrained into their psyche.
Pakistan's foreign policy is merely an instrument of its national psychosis, which is entirely motivated by animosity towards India - and furious national propaganda pertaining to India's commitment to break the Islamic state. Mr Ayaz points out, astutely, that Pakistan's polity constitutes a series of "trust-deficits", and these do not just extend to India and Afghanistan. Such "deficits" may also be seen in the relations between Punjab and the country's other provinces, between the army and politicians, and between the judiciary and elected governments.
Mr Ayaz concludes his analysis by asking whether Pakistan is a "failed" country. He finds that Pakistan fares badly on most criteria - in short, the country is on the verge of collapse.
So, is there room for optimism in this bleak assessment? The author has pointed out that, reluctantly, in the face of serious domestic and external compulsions, the armed forces have come to accept free elections - the Asif Ali Zardari government became Pakistan's first elected government to complete its full term and make way for another after a round of free and fair elections. Mr Ayaz also notes that the Pakistani business community is a major driver for improvement in Indo-Pak relations, and that increased people-to-people contacts would weaken ignorance and prejudice that are all too apparent on both sides.
There is nothing in the book that is not known to Indian followers of Pakistan's affairs. Its importance lies in the impact it should have on different sections of Pakistani society. For the past few decades, they have either collaborated with or ignored the machinations of their armed forces, which, in the name of religion, have tarnished both their faith and their country - so much so that Pakistan is now seen as a major threat, both regionally and globally. Mr Ayaz himself describes Pakistan's commitment to the most rigid and intolerant form of Islam; the pervasive jihadi mindset; the numerous public and private institutions that support the country's commitment to extremist Islam at home and to the Taliban as the instrument of its interests in Afghanistan; and, above all, the powerful hold the armed forces have over every institution in the country. These factors, taken together, hardly provide any reason to be optimistic about the fate of our neighbour.
Saleem Shahzad, Ahmed Rashid and Khalid Ahmed, who have articulated in print their deep concerns about the path their country has taken and their fears about its future. This trend in Pakistani writing has been apparent over the last 10 years, possibly in response to the proliferation of jihadi elements across their country, the bloody and unabated sectarian violence, and the near-total collapse of governance. Mr Ayaz, appropriately, dedicates his work to the victims of terrorism.
In his analysis of Pakistan's malaise, Mr Ayaz has perhaps gone well beyond other Pakistani writers in identifying the "two-nation theory", the basis on which Pakistan was created, as a "genetic defect". This theory, he argues, was propounded by the Muslim elite in undivided India who feared that their privileged position would be diluted in a democratic order. So they pursued the Pakistan project by exploiting the religious feelings of the masses. But they based their propaganda on a false reading of Indian history, postulating a deep divide between Hindus and Muslims across the centuries so that, in their view, at the beginning of the 20th century, two separate civilisations had come to exist side by side in India. However, at the outset, there were contradictions in this project: Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who was entirely Westernised in his personal life, led the Pakistan movement - and, after achieving it, spoke of a "secular" entity in which all communities would live together in peace. He was very different from Muhammad Iqbal, who had inspired the movement with his philosophy and poetry founded on an Islamic vision that drew no distinction between the state and religion.
Over the years, the founding father's vision has been rejected by Pakistan's successive rulers, the first of whom was General Zia ul-Haq, whose dictatorship was based on an unabashed commitment to the Islamisation of Pakistan's polity. He introduced laws and practices, such as the anti-Ahmadiyya enactments and blasphemy laws, that effectively took away from the country the ameliorating balm of love and mutual respect in its religious order and replaced it with hate and violence. Today, as Mr Ayaz has noted, the country is infested with religious militancy - 12,500 madrassas across the country tutor 1.6 million students with an archaic syllabus that preaches intolerance and animosity for non-Muslims, and even for Muslims from non-Sunni sects.
Mr Ayaz has devoted considerable space to the armed forces' domination of governance in Pakistan. They justify their privileged position in the country as defenders of the "Fortress of Islam". In their training at various levels, the soldiers have a mindset of jihad consciously ingrained into their psyche.
Pakistan's foreign policy is merely an instrument of its national psychosis, which is entirely motivated by animosity towards India - and furious national propaganda pertaining to India's commitment to break the Islamic state. Mr Ayaz points out, astutely, that Pakistan's polity constitutes a series of "trust-deficits", and these do not just extend to India and Afghanistan. Such "deficits" may also be seen in the relations between Punjab and the country's other provinces, between the army and politicians, and between the judiciary and elected governments.
Mr Ayaz concludes his analysis by asking whether Pakistan is a "failed" country. He finds that Pakistan fares badly on most criteria - in short, the country is on the verge of collapse.
So, is there room for optimism in this bleak assessment? The author has pointed out that, reluctantly, in the face of serious domestic and external compulsions, the armed forces have come to accept free elections - the Asif Ali Zardari government became Pakistan's first elected government to complete its full term and make way for another after a round of free and fair elections. Mr Ayaz also notes that the Pakistani business community is a major driver for improvement in Indo-Pak relations, and that increased people-to-people contacts would weaken ignorance and prejudice that are all too apparent on both sides.
There is nothing in the book that is not known to Indian followers of Pakistan's affairs. Its importance lies in the impact it should have on different sections of Pakistani society. For the past few decades, they have either collaborated with or ignored the machinations of their armed forces, which, in the name of religion, have tarnished both their faith and their country - so much so that Pakistan is now seen as a major threat, both regionally and globally. Mr Ayaz himself describes Pakistan's commitment to the most rigid and intolerant form of Islam; the pervasive jihadi mindset; the numerous public and private institutions that support the country's commitment to extremist Islam at home and to the Taliban as the instrument of its interests in Afghanistan; and, above all, the powerful hold the armed forces have over every institution in the country. These factors, taken together, hardly provide any reason to be optimistic about the fate of our neighbour.
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