FRAGRANCE OF IDEAS
Division of India in 1947, consequent upon the achievement of independence from the Britishers, led to the formation of two Dominions i.e. Dominion of India and Dominion of Pakistan. Thereafter India declared itself as the Republic of India and Pakistan announced itself as the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Both the nations formulated their state policy and the national agenda for themselves accordingly to make their nation-states get counted at the regional and the international level. While India made great advances over the last seven decades in various fields and is today recognized as one of the leading nations of the world, Pakistan hasn’t been able to achieve a significant place in the comity of nations. There are a number of reasons for this notable difference between the two nations that need research, debate and discussion for the benefit of the future generations.
Having said so, it needs to be mentioned here that Pakistan in the initial years of its formation projected itself as a competitor to India in many areas of activity. However, it lost the track with the passage of time and got completely derailed from its earlier position particularly during the last four decades. Though Pakistan established itself as a nuclear power in 1998 in retaliation to India and also declared itself as the ‘first Islamic nuclear power’, it continued to lose ground in other fields constantly and consistently. It is a perpetual degradation that Pakistan invited for itself due to its state policy, national agenda, civilizational intent and the socio-economic work culture in almost all fields of national activity throughout the nation.
However, as on date, there are some notable ‘achievements’ of Pakistan that can be put under the heading of ‘ABCD’. In the current context, Pakistan has made a ‘big name’ in all these four fields and has also achieved international recognition in this regard. While Pakistanis are feeling completely isolated and disillusioned; and are also expressing themselves about it on the mainstream media and the social media, it is imperative for them to conduct an introspection and review in this regard. The achievements of Pakistan under the title ABCD require a debate here to learn lessons for future. Those who learn from their own mistakes are called smart people but those who learn from other’s mistakes are surely both smart and wise.
Let us start with A that stands for Arms, Arsenal, illegal arms production, Army and Armed insurgency. Immediately after its formation, Pakistan’s army in collaboration with the tribal gunmen invaded the then princely state of Jammu & Kashmir in September-October 1947 with a clear intent to grab the state. The Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir made a request to the government of India for urgent help which India did once the Maharaja signed the Instrument of Accession on 26 October 1947. The Indian army landed in Srinagar and fought gallantly against the invading joint forces of Pakistan army and the brutal tribesmen who had by then reached the outskirts of Srinagar city. The battles in various areas of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh between the two continued for several months and the Indian forces were able to retrieve major portions of the occupied land. At the time of the agreement on ceasefire in August 1948, areas in the districts of Poonch, Mirpur, Muzaffarabad, entire regions of Gilgit & Baltistan remained unretrieved. However, the agreement on ceasefire penned in August 1948 between India and Pakistan was implemented with effect from Ist January 1949.
Pakistan with the passage of time got obsessed with the idea that it needed to be at par with India in the fields of acquiring arms and arsenal for itself. In addition to this, its army developed itself as a ‘state within the state of Pakistan’ having priority in all matters of national concern. In 1965, Pakistan took to insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir followed by a full-fledged war between India and Pakistan. Then in 1971, Pakistan committed genocide of three million of its citizens in East Pakistan that forced huge population of refugees to cross over to India. Finally, one more war broke out between India and Pakistan that saw the division of Pakistan with the creation of a new nation called Bangladesh.
Having tasted the terrible defeat, surrender of a lakh of its army men in Dhaka (biggest ever in history after the II World War) and the division of the country, Pakistan took to armed insurgency into India. Initially it did so in India’s Punjab which was immediately followed by its terror activities in Jammu & Kashmir state. It got recognition globally as the biggest producer and exporter of terrorism. Hundreds of terror organisations were created in Pakistan with open support of the government. Terrorism eventually became an integral part of the state policy of Pakistan.
Terrorism thrived in Pakistan during the rule of President Zia Ul Haq, Prime Ministers Benazir Bhuttoo & Nawaz Sharief and President Parvez Musharaf. The main culprit of 9/11 terror attacks in the US, Osama bin Laden was killed by the US army in a night operation in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. The United Nations designated a number of terrorists in Pakistan and asked for action against them. Pakistan came to be known as the epicentre of global terrorism and every act of terrorism anywhere in the world had a direct or indirect link with Pakistan. India was and is the worst sufferer of the export of terrorism by Pakistan.
Pakistan continues with its established state policy in regard to terrorism against India. However, besides tackling the terror successfully through police and military intervention, India took to another route of diplomacy and international politics affecting geopolitics in a big way. The doctrine of “terror and talks won’t go together” executed by India gradually led Pakistan to an acute regional and international isolation. As on date, Pakistan stands isolated even in the circle of Islamic nations and most of these nations have come extensively closer to India particularly over the last one decade. Pakistan has been left high and dry as a result of its own terrible policies and bad deeds which it continues unabated.
Secondly, B stands for begging, both officially and unofficially. Pakistan has been accused of exporting beggars to other countries and particularly to the Middle-East. The whole of the Middle-East has made their complaints public in this regard and a few of them have applied strict visa restrictions on the Pakistan citizens. The UAE has nearly banned entry of Pakistanis in its territory due to a bad record of the character and conduct of Pakistani immigrants therein. In Europe, America and Australia, the immigrants from Pakistan have caused a scare among the natives of those countries over the last two decades.
Then the government of Pakistan has been asking for funds, grants, help, aid and loan from every available source to run its economy. Three Prime Ministers of Pakistan over the last two decades have publicly expressed their disappointment about Pakistan using its begging bowl (kashkore) at everyone’s doorstep. Nawaz Sharief, Imran Khan and Shahbaz Sharief have made a number of public statements in this context. Anwaar-ul-Haq Kaker, the caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan in 2023 also expressed his disillusionment and helplessness in this regard. But that is the fate accompli of Pakistan unfortunately, that suggests Pakistan as a failed state socially, economically and politically.
Thirdly, C stands for comments and commentary. Pakistan has developed a typical obsession of commentary on all subjects. From politics to sports, economics to geopolitics, religion to ethics and history to current affairs, Pakistan and Pakistanis leave no stone unturned to make comments on all topics with a great implied pseudo-expertise. And the irony is that they mostly do these commentaries more about others and less about themselves. They tend to be experts on all subjects while they take to public platforms like TV, public discourses, social media and even the print media. Having nothing to show off their own, they keep on giving lessons to the world.
It is important here to mention that in the field of sports, Pakistan has touched its lowest ebb. Pakistan in its earlier years had earned a big name in Hockey, Cricket, Squash, Wrestling and Kabaddi but in the current context, it has lost all its lustre and sheen in almost every sport. It is now a peripheral sports nation and has consequently also lost its fan support base within and outside the country rapidly. But Pakistanis don’t desist from engaging in doing commentaries on others without exhibiting anything tangible of their own.
Finally, D stands for donkeys -the production and export of donkeys. Pakistan has an estimated 6 million donkey population and it has become one of the leading exporters of donkeys in the world. China being a significant market for donkey meat, used both in cuisine and for the production of traditional gelatin based medicine called Ejiao, imports the largest number of donkeys from Pakistan. China and Pakistan have an agreement to this effect resulting in the protocol of exports.
Moreover, there are also criminal gangs active globally who are involved in the illegal trade of donkey-skin and some of these gangs are active in Pakistan as well. In nutshell, Pakistan has assumed an expertise in this field and is earning money both legally and illegally. Pakistan can also boast this as another ‘achievement’ in the list along with the achievements captioned under the above mentioned and explained “ABCD”.
(The author is a senior BJP & KP leader, human rights defender, author and columnist and can be reached at [email protected])
