The story of Pakistan is one of remorseless tug and pull between the civilian and military rulers on the one hand, and the liberal and religious forces on the other.
In the process, the country has failed to become either a democracy, a theocracy or a permanent military dictatorship.
The chief casualties have been the rule of law, the state institutions and the process of national integration, with grave consequences for the civil society.
The “Talebanisation” of the north-western region is one manifestation of the prevalent disorder; an unending separatist campaign by nationalists in the south-western Balochistan province is another.
Meanwhile, sectarian and ethnic tensions have kept the two largest provinces – namely Punjab, which is the bread-basket of the country, and Sindh, which is its trading and industrial mainstay – perennially instable.
How and why did all this come about?
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