Dr Khalil's Intellectual Space

Pak Political Economy +

Dr Khalil's Intellectual Space

Pak Political Economy +

Forsaken by the State

Note: The day Benazir Bhutto was murdered, December 27, 2007, it was the day when all the semblance of government evaporated in Pakistan; there was widespread anarchy and uncertainty; there was arson, loot, and destruction. Fear prevailed. As if the life and property of ordinary citizens of this country were forsaken by the State! Here is the Story: Where there is no property there is no injustice.John Locke Regardless of the controversy whether we human beings are by nature good or bad, what is crucially required to keep our society intact is that we must be treated as free agents.

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The road ahead is quite straight

This article was written last year in the wake of December 16 APS Tragedy to expose the Politicians’ inaction. It’s still relevant today on December 16, 2015. The road ahead is quite straight Beware of the politicians! They cannot think and act out of their politically blocked mentality! They are a victim of paradigms made of their own choice; that’s why they disdain rules, laws and the constitution, which require and bind them to act accordingly. They won’t break the paradigms, which ensure their short-term survival, and it’s seldom that they shift to newer paradigms of thinking and action in

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Crimes and the political alibi

“I am a politician; I cannot commit any crime; I am perfectly innocent!” That is how, as we know at least in Pakistan, politicians argue. That manner of political self-defense clears the two-way traffic: criminals may become politicians; and, politicians may become criminals. Pakistanis have enough of both. And the breed is multiplying like rabbits. All the more, species belonging to other realms of social, economic, military, cultural, religious have started aping the politicians. They have learned the art of politics from them. That’s a hundred percent fool-proof method of overcoming any odds. Also, that has rendered all the systems

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Pakistani philosophers and politics

The two noblest professions are teaching and politics. [Aristotle] Back in 2002 when the 35th Annual Session of Pakistan Philosophical Congress held in the Bukhari Auditorium, Government College (now G. C. University), Lahore. Dr. Naeem Ahmad was Secretary of the PPC (Dr. Naeem had been Chairman Department of Philosophy, University of the Punjab, Lahore),  and well before the start of the proceedings I had time and time again requested him to allow me to present a Resolution in its General Body meeting. He was positive. On March 16, while the proceedings ended, late in the evening meeting of the General

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Depoliticization and its causes

Here is the first part of this article: A depoliticized Pakistan on the rampage The 2nd and the final part: Depoliticization and its causes What’s a depoliticized Pakistan; how is it different from a politically apathetic Pakistan; how is it damaging both for the society and its state; who does now represent it, such questions were discussed in A depoliticized Pakistan on the rampage. In the present piece, some other questions will be dwelt on such as: why doesn’t a depoliticized India or Bangladesh exist in India or Bangladesh, for example?  Why that’s so only with Pakistan? Why is Pakistan so fecund

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Why taxes are not a political issue in Pakistan?

Note: I sent this piece of writing to all the newspapers one by one; none bothered to see it or use it, that I am justified to conclude! Why taxes are not a political issue in Pakistan? All the politics is about collecting and spending taxes; but unfortunately that reality does not translate into political issues in Pakistan. What it translates into is power-politics pure and simple! See the arrogant issueless politics of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf; see the pseudo-development politics of Pakistan Muslim League (N); see the outdated Roti-Kapra-Makaan politics of Pakistan Peoples Party (P); see the identity-less politics of Awami

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The 21st point: Overhaul the state

Note: This article was completed on December 31st, 2014, and was originally posted on this Blog in January 2015. Presently there is happening quite a serious debate on the 20 points envisaged in the National Action Plan. Its thrust is on two points: i) All these measures should have been in their place since long as a matter of routine, probably from the day first when Pakistan came to exist; and, ii) Due to the past negligence of the governments, doubts and questions are being raised about the efficacy of these measures. The argument the present writer aims to make

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What’s the game, politically speaking?

Note: I completed this article on December 9, 2014, and wrote: “(Government) ought not to be afraid of martial law the prospects of which are zero presently, rather minus.” Now merely 9 months later the prospects of martial law have grown formidably positive; so what’s the game, politically speaking, let’s try to see: What’s the game, politically speaking? In democracy, only a majority party is allowed to rule, and it may turn out to be a tyranny; no smaller party alone can lay a claim to that privilege. That’s the advantage of democracy one can cite while arguing with its

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State Aristocracy (ریاستی اشرافیہ) being promoted in Pakistan

Patron Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders Shahid Rasheed Button says State Aristocracy is being promoted in Pakistan. Here is the story published in Pakistan Observer of September 21, 2015. Bank tax dubbed as irrational Monday, September 21, 2015 – Islamabad—Patron Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders Shahid Rasheed Button Sunday said withholding tax (WHT) on bank transactions will never be acceptable to majority of the businessmen which are dubbing it as illogical and fiscal terrorism. WHT is inconsistent with the ground realities therefore it must be reviewed and made acceptable as it is not being practiced anywhere in the world in the

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What the political parties are doing in hospitals!

Pakistan is a criminally horrible state. Read the whole story, published in The Express Tribune on September 15, 2015: Minister directs hospitals to remove political parties’ offices KARACHI: Sindh health minister Jam Mehtab Dahar has directed the managements of all public hospitals in the city to remove the offices of political parties from their premises, ordering them not to take any pressure while taking action against them. The major public hospitals, including Civil Hospital, Karachi (CHK), Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, National Institute of Child Health and National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, until now, housed the offices of

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Pak polity – racing backwards

So to say, in about 70 years, the political gains Pakistan’s polity has been able to make are dismal! Pessimistically, it’s NOTHING! Optimistically, it’s merely the Constitution that itself came to be agreed upon about 25 years after the country’s emergence on the map of the world. That casts a heavy doubt on the credence of Pakistan’s polity. Politically speaking, things stand in the same mould now they stood on the first day. The final verdict on the quality of the Pak polity may thus be worded: The citizens still live at their own risk in a country which is

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PML-N’s Bhatta or withholding tax

It seems the present dispensation of PML-N believes in no principles of taxation. It’s just there to extort whatever amount of taxes the Federal Board of Revenue may extort from the citizens in the form of bribes and in the name of taxes: of course, for itself as well as for the government. However, the principles of taxation, the PML-N may be supposed to believe in, manifest themselves in the measures it announces in the budget and then obtains their approval from the parliament. That much is least controversial; what is controversial is the way the new taxes are conceived

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Stray reflections on the 68th Independence Day

Note: This article was completed on August 4, 2014. Since then little has changed; this piece is still relevant on this 68th Independence Day.  Stray reflections on the 67th Independence Day For the sane in Pakistan the fight is about protecting the values, the humanity has developed in the course of thousands of years, from the political and religio-political witchcraft, which it is intent upon destroying thoughtlessly. How the time-tested values were trashed (and are being trampled even this moment) when Pakistan came into being is a saga of ruthless fights between the politicians continuing to this very day, the

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Military courts: a moral perspective

A person who is murdered, has he any rights? That question may seem strange. Let me add another dimension to it: What’s the spirit of law? Does it exist for the rights of the murderers to be protected? Or, it exists for the alive so that they enjoy their life safe and sound? Last year, in a seminar on the citizens’ fundamental rights when I made a comment that most of the NGOs are always ahead in safeguarding the rights of those who are accused of capital crimes but why they never turn up to defend the rights of those

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A depoliticized Pakistan on the rampage

The pivot of politics is always seeking power, so that a political party is able, so to say, to implement its program on the basis of which it wins voters’ mandate. That’s an ideal statement of an ideal polity! In reality it doesn’t happen like that. There are betrayals, treacheries, and opportunism on the part of political parties. There is perennial interference, for instance in the case of Pakistan, by the players who are external to the political realm but are always intent upon unleashing political instability and uncertainty in the country. Also, there are other elements different from both

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Prosperity is here in Pakistan, Mr. PM!

Countries may be likened to individuals who are resourceless and in order to grow and progress need help from their near ones, dear ones or they borrow from a professional lender. That may be understood as the reality of setting-up a business for which capital is a sine qua non. Such attempts of likening countries with individuals appear quite promising, but are paradoxical. The case of Warren Buffet may be used, for instance, for Pakistan to follow. Is it so? Or it tears apart the likeness between both? In the first place, individuals are individuals, and countries are countries. One

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The Political Kingdom of Pakistan

The Government of India Act 1935 declared “Pakistan” only as an independent dominion. Then in the constitution of 1956, the state was named as the “Islamic Republic of Pakistan.” However, when the constitution of 1962 was promulgated, the state of Pakistan found a new name, “Republic of Pakistan” with the prefix “Islamic” dropped. The same was restored to its original position in 1963. Down the road, the constitution of 1973 retained this nomenclature for the state of Pakistan; so the name resonates to this day. But one question has perennially been raising its head through the 7 decades of the

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Cynicism in Pakistan

The title of this piece appears to be problematic. One can argue how cynicism may be confined to geographical specifications such as one of Pakistani type. But Pakistani cynicism may be justified on the ground that whatever its general meaning, the way a cynicism formulates in a society makes it special. Thus this piece tries to identify specific Pakistani attributes of cynicism. Let’s try to have an idea of what cynicism generally stands for. First, it implies that all the ‘people are motivated by selfishness.’ Another most important and most common trait is that a cynic’s ‘outlook is scornfully and often habitually negative.’ As a

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Bilawal – a political crown prince

History is replete with stories of off-springs used in order to seize and wield power. One such story has been narrated by Abdul Haleem Sharar in his excellent Urdu book, “Guzishta Lucknow” (Lucknow of the past). In its chapter on “Jang-e-Azadi aur Lucknow” (War of Independence and Lucknow), he writes: “The King, Wajid Ali Shah himself was in Calcutta, his family was in London, and . . . the conflict over the cartridges and government’s insistence suddenly caused a mutiny and from Merrut to Bengal such revolt flared up that the homes of every friend and foe were burnt and

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

چین کدھر؟ یا پاکستان کا بایاں بازو کدھر؟

کل 17 اپریل کو میں ریاض صاحب سے ملنے گیا۔ ریاظ ، مصورہیں اور بیشترعلمی و ادبی کتابوں کے سرورق کھینچتے ہیں۔ وہ کہنے لگے، الحمرا (مال روڈ،لاہور) میں ڈاکٹر لال خان کی کتاب کی رونمائی کی تقریب ہے، اگرآپ نہیں چاہتے تو نہیں جاتے؛ورنہ چلتے ہیں۔ میں نے کہا، کوئی بات نہیں، چلتے ہیں۔ یہ تقریب الحمراہال تین میں تھی۔ ہم کوئی آدھ گھنٹے کی تاخیر سے پہنچے۔ تقریب کا آغاز ہو چکا تھا، اور جو صاحب سٹیج سنبھالے ہوئے تھے، جن کا نام بعد میں پتہ چلا آفتاب ہے، وہ کچھ کلمات ادا کر رہے تھے۔ انھوں نے

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Malala’s Peace Prize, cynics and ashraafists

The case of 2014 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Malala Yousafzai, which she shares with an Indian Kailash Satyarthi, who has devoted himself to the cause of child slavery, may be used as a litmus test should we want to know the bent of mind of any Pakistani fellow. This will help us know whether someone is a cynic or an ashraafist or both. Ask someone what he thinks about the Nobel Peace Prize for Malala; if he tells you, ‘Please, no joking!,’ be assured that he is both a cynic and an ashraafist. Some of the refined souls may

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Disrupting the system of governance in Punjab

It does not need any political acumen to see the reality behind the results of those surveys which declare the governance in the province of Punjab as better or best in comparison to other provinces. Building flyovers or such “marvels” within a stipulated time or following the PPRA (Public Procurement Regulatory Authority) rules is no feat; that should go on on its own as a matter of routine. Reaching at any place where for instance a hapless woman has been raped, or a heinous murder has taken place, or in the midst of flood-ravaged people by no means can be

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Why Pakistan is not a viable state?

Better to start with two clarifications: First, this piece does not raise the question of Pakistani state’s viability in the sense Pakistan’s Leftists and liberals are wont to discuss it. They say something like that: It’s unviable because it was created by the British in line with their policy of Divide and Rule; It’s unviable because it was created by the narrow-mindedness of Hindus or the Congress, or the stubbornness of Muslims or the League. They also hold that: It’s unviable because religion is never the basis of any state. The writer prospectively believes that states are not rational entities;

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Islamabad sit-ins – who is the culprit

In the matters of running the state of Pakistan, penetration of politics, politicians and political considerations have marred the capability of the state to think clearly, act accordingly and punish promptly; which has weakened it to such an extent that in most of the cases the state is conspicuous by its absence, resulting in increasing anarchy in the country. It was back in 1953 that Justice Munir Inquiry Report concluded thus: “And it is our deep conviction that if the Ahrar had been treated as a pure question of law and order, without any political considerations, one District Magistrate and

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ISPR’s political semantics – I

Nothing can be understood in isolation. So is the case with three recent press releases of the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), which acts as the voice of Pakistan Army. However, any attempt to understand them without putting them in their proper context is misleading. Actually, words and sentences are packets of explosives or envelopes of goodwill. It is the situation in which words and sentences are expressed which determines the nature of their destructive or constructive character. So let’s indulge in a bit of political semantics: Here is the text of the 1stpress release (N0.184/2014-ISPR), which was issued on

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Aristocratization / Bureaucratization of Adabi Baithak (ادبی بیٹھک), Lahore

Years back, when the very well-know Pak Tea House was closed down, a small portion of the Hall III, Al-Hamra, The Mall, Lahore, was made into a place exclusively for the littérateur to sit, chat, and take a cup of tea. It was known as Adabi Baithak (ادبی بیٹھک).   It’s important to note here that there is a “canteen” also inside the premise of Al-Hamra, outside of which in the open space visitors and especially students of music, and artists used to sit and enjoy a cup of tea. One could see and listen to the sound of a

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Charter of Democracy’s half truth

As the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreek launched this August 14 their “Azadi March” and “Inqilab March” respectively, and then undertook the Sit-Ins (Dharnas) in Islamabad; day by day it was increasingly perceived as a deadly threat to political constitutional set-up prevailing in the country. With worsening law and order situation in the capital including the fears of occupation of state buildings by the marchers, the fear of military intervention loomed large on the political horizon. However, in the face of it something very surprising took place: All the political parties sitting in the parliament reposed and reiterated their

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The politics of PTI / PAT: an aesthetical analysis

Everything has an aesthetic aspect. Politics is one of them. The political aesthetics appears, among other things, in two forms: Mannerism; and, Language. The others may be: the beauty of political ideas; the way a politician connects his/her ideas; the reality of political ideas in contrast to wishful political slogans; the beauty of a political vision; the beauty of words and terms chosen by a politician; consistency in the ideas of a politician, etc. The second list is controversial; it’s useless to discuss it here. The first one is sort of methodical, and I would dwell on it. One may

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Political use of religion in Pakistan

In Pakistan, everything stands politicized. So is religion. Those who are clever enough make hay while the sun shines. Tahir-ul-Qadri is one of them and is famously know as a religio-political power seeker. He is more of a religious leader; trying his luck in politics. Since the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) was founded about two decades ago, it has constantly been failing in winning the voters’ mandate. It never made any headway in any general elections. So the PAT is a party, like so many others having this or that much of following in various parts of Pakistan, which has

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Gangsterism – religious and political

The place is not far from Islamabad. A three hour drive and one is far away from almost everything Pakistani. Not only is the weather pleasanter; this small place presents the ethos of a non-Pakistani world. Here it is just one road on both sides of which are located a number of hotels and other shops. It was evening time and I was sitting in the restaurant of a hotel and looking through the window-glass out on the road. It was no crowding here, only a few visitors doing shopping and walking on the road. On the right side from

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Media wars

It is essential to seek out enemy agents who have come to conduct espionage against you and to bribe them to serve you. Give them instructions and care for them. Thus doubled agents are recruited and used. [Sun Tzu] Before March 9, 2007, it was all dark on the horizon of Pakistan. A military dictator was ruling while dressed in khaki uniform; he was intent upon continuing his rule for the next 5 years; and the criminal politicians were all ready to help him rule for more than a hundred years. Such was the hopelessness that no rational being could

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Mr. Khan! Let’s have a candid talk

Mr. Khan now be serious! Somehow the circumstances have made you a political leader. Now you lead a political party, which has a considerable following; no matter which class or classes it consists of. The followers of your party, they are all Pakistanis, and enjoy the same political choices as the followers of other political parties do. It was just non-serious and out of sync when recently you spoke in Islamabad, and said, ‘I was boring; New Pakistan was not anywhere on the scene coming into being. Then I thought something had to be done.’ Regarding this, you need to

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Mr. Prime Minister! It’s time to act

Mr. Prime Minister! You are better placed than any other Pakistani citizen, since you are sitting in the center of the state. The office you occupy by virtue of your electoral mandate is where the state authority converges, and it is from where authority flows to other institutions of the state in accordance with the dictates of the constitution of the country. Mr. Prime Minister! You are the Chief Executive of the state of Pakistan, and as far as flow of information regarding the affairs of the state is concerned, in comparison to you this writer is merely an ignoramus.

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Politics and the destruction of our cities

Years back, I sent an article titled, “Nationalization of social and moral values in Pakistan,” to a newspaper. It did publish but with entirely a different title. The new title, “A state that took over society” aptly described what that article was about. Now when I want to write about the destruction of our cities by the political elites in their bid to impress the citizens as voters, I cannot think of a better title than the present one. First I thought of this one: “Preserving the older cities.” However, both the titles communicate what this article argues about. First,

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Hopeless in Pakistan

The cities and suburbs of Pakistan are bursting with millions of teeming citizens, old and young, men and women and children alike. They earn their livelihood by small selling of goods or services which unimaginably involves hard labor with meager income. Or they are employed by private entrepreneurs who have to incessantly struggle against the vagaries of state’s regulators and tax officials. They form the larger chunk of a population of 18 million plus. It is they who cast vote to send a political party in the parliament, but cherish no hope this will ameliorate their life conditions they know

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In Pakistan, the state is the problem

In Pakistan, the state is the problem! See these pictures: Women protest Muridke police torture of Razia Bibi, who was on full-term, that caused a still-birth People of Manga Mandi demonstrate against police [The News, April 9, 2014] Note: This was originally posted in April 2014.

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Senators or free-riders

Here is what the upper house of the Pakistani parliament is interested in: Greener pastures: Senators seek equal share in foreign trips   [The Express Tribune, April 14, 2014] Note: This was originally posted on April 14, 2014.

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My new book, “Pakistan’s Democratic Impasse: Analysis and the Way Forward” published / released

Here is the media release: New book – “Pakistan’s Democratic Impasse” published The book indicts politicians as the main culprit for failing the state of Pakistan The book falsifies the myth of blaming the Pakistan Army for the ills Pakistanis facing Author argues constitution authorizes politicians to rule, not the Army   Lahore April 8, 2014: Alternate Solutions Institute released today Dr. Khalil Ahmad’s new book, Pakistan’s Democratic Impasse – Analysis and the Way Forward. Already this in 2012 and this February, he has published three books, “Pakistan Mein Riyasti Ashrafiya Ka Urooj” (The Rise of State Aristocracy in Pakistan, February

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Renaissance for Reforms – Introducing a new book

Here is the Introduction by the authors: The recipe for growth is well-known. Most economists would agree that lower taxes and less regulation can encourage entrepreneurship and job creation. Yet, many governments are unwilling to introduce such reforms. An important reason is concern over a voter backlash. Jean-Claude Juncker, a likely candidate for the EU-presidency after two decades as Luxemburg’s Prime Minister, famously lamented “We all know what to do, we just don’t know how to get re-elected after we’ve done it.” Based on an analysis of 109 governments in developed countries, we would suggest that Juncker’s view is mistakenly

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Note, please!

Note please! By sheer mistake, last night I deleted a number of posts from the blog: http://NotesFromPakistan.blogspot.com That’s why many a link may not work; I am in the process of posting them again.

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اشراف اور عوام کی تقسیم

الفاظ ہم خود بناتے، گھڑتے اور تراشتے ہیں۔ لیکن یہ بھی اتنا ہی سچ ہے کہ جواباً الفاظ بھی ہمیں بناتے، تراشتے اور بگاڑتے ہیں۔ جیسے ایک شعر میں بیان ہوا ہے: کھلتا کسی پہ کاہے کو دل کا معاملہ / شعروں کے انتخاب نے رسوا کیا مجھے۔ اور جیسے شاعر چاؤسر کا کہنا تھا:حکم نہ لگاؤ، کہیں تم پر حکم نہ لگ جائے۔ اسی طرح، الفاظ ہماری نمائندگی کرتے ہیں۔ یہ ہمارے عکاس ہوتے ہیں۔ یہ ہماری چغلی کھاتے ہیں۔ یہ ہمارے احساسات اور خیالات کو بے نقاب کرتے ہیں۔ الفاظ، ہماری دنیا اور ہماری زندگی کو بیان کرتے

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سقراط پر ایک غیر سقراطی کتاب

سقراط ازعائشہ اشفاق نور الحمد پبلی کیشنز، لاہور، 2014 مختصر جائزہ : [نوٹ: عائشہ اشفاق نور کی کتاب ’’سقراط‘‘ کا یہ جائزہ جون 14 کو لاہور میں جدت ریسرچ اینڈ پبلی کیشنز کے تحت منعقدہ کتاب کی تقریبِ پذیرائی میں پڑھا گیا۔] اس مختصر جائزے میں کچھ نکات اور معاملات کی طرف توجہ دلانا مقصود ہے۔ 1۔ سقراط ان یونانی فلاسفہ میں سے ہے، جو جس فلسفے پر یقین رکھتے تھے، اپنی زندگی بھی اسی کے مطابق گزارتے تھے۔ اس مفہوم میں یہ کتاب ”عظیم یونانی فلسفی کی داستانِ حیات“ سے بڑھ کر ”سقراط کی داستانِ فکروحیات“ ہے۔ یعنی سقراط

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

زندگی بھر کا عذاب: ایک بد تمیز اور بدمعاش ریاست کے ساتھ

یہ پوسٹ ایک گذشتہ پوسٹ سے جڑی ہوئی ہے، جس میں اسی موضوع پر خامہ فرسائی کی گئی تھی اور پنجاب حکومت کا ایک اشتہار ثبوت کے طور پر منسلک کیا گیا تھا۔ ایک اور اشتہار ملاحظہ کیجیے۔ اس میں ریاست کی بدتمیزی اور بدمعاشی کا مزید ثبوت مہیا کیا گیا ہے۔ مجھے تو یوں محسوس ہوتا ہے کہ جب کسی عام شہری کا سابقہ کسی سرکاری افسر یا منتخب نمائندے سے پڑتا ہے، اور اس کا جو رعونت آمیز رویہ سامنے آتا ہے، وہ اسی بدتمیزی اور بدمعاشی سے عبارت ہوتا ہے۔  ہم سب بے چارے عام شہری بہت

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

سویڈن میں سول پاکستان کی تلاش

سول پاکستان کی تلاش میں اک پاکستانی کس طرح سویڈن میں جا بستا ہے۔ جبکہ بیٹرا تو یہ اٹھانا پڑے گا کہ موجودہ پاکستان کو سول پاکستان کیسے بنایا جائے۔  عطاالحق قاسمی کا درجِ ذیل کالم روزنامہ جنگ 24 اپریل میں کو شائع ہوا۔  

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

ریاستی اشرافیہ پاکستان کو دیمک کی طرح چاٹ رہی ہے!

رضا علی عابدی بہت دھیمے انداز میں بات کہتے ہیں۔ دیکھیے انھوں نے پاکستان کی ریاستی اشرافیہ کی کارگزاریوں کو کیسے بیان کیا ہے۔ پڑھیے اور روئیے: [روزنامہ جنگ لاہور، 11 اپریل، 2014] [روزنامہ جنگ لاہور، 18 اپریل، 2014]

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

مفت خورے اشراف

ریاستی اشرافیہ کی ہوس ماند پڑنے کا نام نہیں لیتی۔ یہ ریاست کو لوٹنے سے باز نہیں آتے۔ اور تب تک لوٹنے سے باز نہیں آ سکتے جب تک قوانین سازی اور ضابطہ سازی پر ان کا کنٹرول باقی ہے۔ دیکھیے ریاستی اشرافیہ کی یہ کھیپ کس طرح مراعات کے لے تڑپ رہی ہے: [The News Lahore, April 15, 2015] [روزنامہ جنگ لاہور، 15 اپریل، 2014] 

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

پاکستان: ایک بدتمیز اور بدمعاش ریاست

پاکستان میں جسے سرکاری نوکری اور ساتھ کچھ تھوڑا بہت سرکاری یعنی ریاستی اختیار مل جاتا ہے، وہ بے چارہ احساسِ کہتری اور کمتری کا مارا فوراً انسان کے درجے سے بلند ہو کر خدا بن بیٹھتا ہے۔ بیوروکریسی یوں ہی افسرشاہی بنتی ہے۔ بلکہ یہ کہنا چاہیے کہ پاکستان میں کسی کو پبلک ٹائلیٹ کے باہر نگرانی پر بٹھا دیں، وہ فوراً بیوروکریٹ بن جائے گا۔ سرکاری یا ریاستی اختیار ان کا دماغ ہی خراب نہیں کرتا، ان کی زبان کو بھی خراب کر دیتا ہے۔ ذیل میں نقل کیا جانے والا سرکاری اشتہار دیکھیے، اس کی زبان ملاحظہ

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سِول پاکستان ـ اردو بلاگ
Dr. Khalil Ahmad

اُلجھے ہوئے کالم نگار اور رعونت زدہ انائیں

ذیل میں دو کالم نقل  ہیں۔ دیکھیے بڑے بڑے کالم نگار کن معاملات میں الجھے ہوئے ہیں؛ ان کی دلچسپیاں کیا ہیں؛ ان کی انا کیسی رعونت میں ڈوبی ہوئی ہے۔ میں عام طور انھیں نہیں پڑھتا، مگر بعض اوقات سرسری نظر ڈال لیتا ہوں؛ بالخصوص جب کالم کا عنوان ’’پُرکشش‘‘ ہو۔  پہلا کالم رؤف طاہر کا ہے۔ یہ روزنامہ جنگ میں 8 مارچ کو شائع ہوا۔ اس کے جواب میں سلیم صافی کا کالم روزنامہ جنگ میں 11 مارچ کو شائع ہوا۔ اس کالم کو نہلے پہ دہلا کہنے میں کوئی ہرج نہیں!

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