Megalomaniac

When I first heard about the resumption of cricket ties between India and Pakistan, I was ecstatic. Plans were made with my Pakistani friends to go to India in December-January to watch the upcoming Indo-Pak series (three ODIs and two T20s). For a Pakistani cricket fan, this was a wonderful piece of news but for some Indians, it was simply unacceptable. On July 17, this newspaper [MiD DAY] carried a hard-hitting editorial titled: ‘ It can’t just be fun and games with Pakistan ’. It was written, “India suspended all cricketing ties with Pakistan following the horrific attack by Pakistan-trained terrorists on November 26, 2008 across various, carefully chosen targets in Mumbai. The attack claimed 169 lives, and India should never forget that … Even if India and Pakistan would want to restart playing against each other (and it is indeed a noble sporting cause), the symbolism of suspended ties cannot be discounted.” MiD DAY is not alone in voicing this criticism. Many Indian twitterati...

July 5, 1977, will be remembered as the darkest day in Pakistan’s history. General Zia-ul-Haq overthrew the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto through a coup d'état and imposed martial law in Pakistan. He announced that new elections would be held soon but, as we all know, military dictators are not to be trusted. For the next 11 years, General Zia tormented the people of Pakistan through his brutal rule. Public floggings were held to put fear in the hearts of the dissident voices. Political opponents were jailed and brutally tortured. Religious zealots were let loose on the public. Sectarianism flourished. As a consequence of the Afghan jihad , violence was glorified in the name of Islam. Draconian laws such as the blasphemy laws and Hudood Ordinances were introduced. The Ahmadiyya community, having already been declared non-Muslims in 1974, were further ostracised from society by the promulgation of Ordinance XX. Weaponisation of society, gl...