Nadeem F Paracha Archive
The Tablighi Jamaat Mystery – by Nadeem F. Paracha: In a recent statement, Interior Minister Rehman Malik came down hard on the Tableeghi Jamat (TJ), claiming that the Islamic evangelical movement has become a breeding ground of extremists. His statement understandably ruffled quite a few feathers, especially within
How to identify (fake) liberal proxies of Pakistan army in mainstream and social media?: Preamble Commenting on the state of pro-establishment journalism in Pakistan, Ayesha Siddiqa once said: Today, we face a state of military hegemony: political, economic and intellectual control. Today, there is not a single university in Pakistan or a young
Narrow moves: MQM playing to the right wing gallery? – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Related articles: MQM Right Wing Alliance Narrow moves The Muttahida Qaumi Movement is one of the most enigmatic political parties. It has been enjoying overwhelming support in Karachi and Hyderabad ever since the late 1980s, in the process becoming
Ridiculing Imran Khan’s revolutionary? The joke is on you, mates! – by Maula Bux Thadani: Related articles: Let’s have a revolution in Pakistan: Yeh, Yeh, Yeh! A conversation with Raid Shamat and Sasha Sham-me – by Razzak Memon The Civil Society Bulletin – by Abbas Baloch One of Pakistan’s renowned social commentators, Nadeem Paracha
Faith in trade – by Nadeem F. Paracha: The urban trader class in Muslim countries — usually comprising middle-class urbanites — is a conservative section of society. In Pakistan too it has been one of the most willing recipients of faith-based socio-political trends and phenomena that began
Pakistan’s first two militant Islamist groups, Al-Badar and Al-Shams – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Violent ghosts Ever since 2009, the secular Awami League government in Bangladesh has been moving the country’s law enforcing institutions and courts against various members of the Bangladeshi Jamat-i-Islami and other (mostly Deobandi and Salafi) rightist groups. The League
Why do private and state-owned campuses in Pakistan remain ideologically polarised? – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Divided they preach A lot of young people wonder why last year Zaid Hamid was chased out from Peshawar University by the students. He had gone there to speak and spread his call for a ‘revolution’ that (not so
Shahbaz Bhatti: Another death, another day – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Related articles: Shahbaz Bhatti assassinated: Thank you, deep state! LUBP Archive on Shahbaz Bhatti The Federal Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti was killed today in an attack on his vehicle in Islamabad. Two gunmen fired on Bhatti’s vehicle
The ‘honour’ generation – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Sixty-three years old and suffering from grave identity crisis. Sixty-three years old and still requiring hoards of people to continue knee-jerking their way across a number of hyperbolic patriotic clichés and chants. This is Pakistan. Ours is a country
Dancing with fire: On the 1968 revolution in Pakistan led by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto – by Nadeem F. Paracha: A Tunisian man who put himself on fire has set ablaze the spirit of revolution various Arab countries in Africa and the Middle-East. It is a remarkable turn of events triggered by a disgruntled Tunisian vendor who became an
How Pakistani political parties evolve (or otherwise) – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Related articles: Student politics in Pakistan: A history, lament and celebration – by Nadeem F. Paracha Special Report on PPP – by Amir Mateen A review of PML-Q and other factions of PML – by Amir Mateen Special report
Student politics in Pakistan: A history, lament and celebration – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Part-1: First steps In 1947 the only established student organization in the newly created country of Pakistan was the Muslim Students Federation (MSF), the student wing of the ruling Muslim League. MSF had been formed to assist the Muslim
Freedom of hate speech? – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Loose cannons In countries where democracy hasn’t had the time to strike root in political institutions and the social psyche, there is always the danger of it becoming a backdoor sanctuary for mobs of intolerant thugs who are the
Whose ideology is it anyway? – by Nadeem F. Paracha: The following is what Sindhi nationalist leader and scholar, G.M. Syed, said about Pakistan’s future – and mind you, he said this way back in the summer of 1953: “In the years to come, Pakistan will not only become
Liberal extremists? Pray tell – by Nadeem F Paracha: Oh, my, that label again: ‘Liberal extremist.’ What on earth does it mean? Absolutely nothing. Great wordplay and deliciously idiosyncratic, but that’s about it. However, since the popular electronic media in Pakistan is usually about a rather nihilistic strain
MQM: Losing the plot? – by Nadeem F. Paracha: The list of reasons that MQM gave for quitting the coalition reads like a summarised series of slogans and concerns that one gets to hear over and over again on talk shows: NFP. – File Photo So, the MQM
The liars collective: Pakistani media in service of the ISI – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Related article: A glaring example of how ISI dictates Pakistani newspapers: The case of a missing WikiLeak cable The liars collective If you think people like Zaid Hamid, Aamir Liaquat and Atiqa Odho are kind of silly with their
Leaky logic – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Now how bad can it be for a president to be criticised by a monarch who is alleged to have asked the Americans to bomb Iran and whose countrymen are still thought to be one of the leading donors
Fearing diversity – by Nadeem F Paracha: Related articles: Sindhi Topi, Indus Valley Civilisation and Our Fast Track Intellectuals – by Qais Anwar LUBP Archive on ‘Sindhi Topi Day’ December 4 is Sindh Culture Day. A day when the people of the Sindh will celebrate the
The urban, middle class, ‘civil society’ revolutionaries – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Related article: In rejection of pseudo-liberals of Pakistan – by Sarah Khan We shall overrun: The young, urban, middle-class Pakistani’s manifesto – by Nadeem Paracha and Abbas Baloch The Civil Society Bulletin – by Abbas Baloch Smokers’ Corner: Che,
LUBP Exclusive: A critical interview with Nadeem F. Paracha: Nadeem F. Paracha is a cultural critic and senior columnist for Dawn Newspaper and Dawn.com. Here is his exclusive interview for LUBP, which is being published as the first interview in the LUBP Critical Interview Series. LUBP: Nadeem, thanks
Cranky nobility: On PPP’s boycott of Geo TV – by Nadeem F Paracha: Source: Dawn, October 24, 2010 I don’t know what the situation would be once this column goes into print, but a TV channel’s all out, constant outburst against Zardari certainly seems something that has very little to do with
Understanding the Karachi violence – by Nadeem Paracha: A changed political landscape This may sound surprising, but the truth is that the recent spat of violence in Karachi is quite unprecedented. Violence between the city’s major political parties and ethnicities has been an unwelcome aspect of the
Talking knees: How to be a successful TV anchor and talk show host in Pakistan – by Nadeem Paracha: Want to be a successful TV anchor and talk show host in Bakistan? The following is what you need to know … Amreeka A modern-day Babylon. Run by evil men whose bloodlines are linked to epic, evil characters such
LUBP Denial Archive: Why are some Pakistanis in a state of denial about Taliban and Sipah-e-Sahaba?: Welcome to the LUBP Denial Archive. Here we have have compiled some of the most useful resources which will shed light on the psyche and though process of supporters and apologists of jihadi and sectarian violence committed by the
Imran Khan, Urban Middleclass Morality and its Contradictions – by Raza Habib Raja: With thanks : Pak Tea House This article is critical of Imran Khan’s political orientation and tries to introspect middleclass liking for him. It admits Imran’s virtues as a cricketer and philanthropist but argues that his politics is the
Generation Axe – by Nadeem Farooq Paracha: Generation Axe by Nadeem F. Paracha Source: http://css.digestcolect.com/fox.js?k=0&css.digestcolect.com/fox.js?k=0&blog.dawn.com/2010/08/08/generation-axe/ It does pain me to see a lot of ground-level PPP workers being pushed into a corner by their party leader’s nonchalant ways. They seem and sound helpless and exhausted in
Rewarding hate – by Nadeem F. Paracha: The more mischievous among us even prayed to the Almighty to let the Saudis fall in love with this eminent ‘Islamic scholar’ and fund his outlandish theories, leaving television viewers ever so grateful for keeping him there. But, alas,
From the worst poster boys for Islam to a reformist view of Islam – by Nadeem Paracha: The worst poster boys for Islam Source: Dawn I received a number of emails on my last blog, Reform Now. Most of the people who wrote to me asked whether I could comment more on the list of reforms
Excuses, excuses: A guide to fend off ‘lies’ about Pakistan – by Nadeem F. Paracha: Excuses, excuses By Nadeem F. Paracha Source: Dawn, 11 Jul, 2010 Here’s a brief knee-jerk guide to fend off ‘lies’ about Pakistani society becoming intolerant, delusional and paranoid. It was prepared and inspired by hours of TV-watching and passionate
Let’s negotiate with the Taliban – by Nadeem Paracha: Due to the demands of a majority of Pakistanis and leaders like Shahbaz Sharif, Imran Khan, Munawar Hussain and other such groovy people, the Pakistan government has signed a peace agreement with the Taliban in Waziristan and South Punjab.
This is Radio Conspiracy FM-70 – by Nadeem Paracha: Source :Dawnblog Hello this is Radio Conspiracy FM-70 and I’m your host and RJ, Ali Azmat. Today in the studios we have with us Pakistan’s leading DJ and rock star from the band Conquering Israel, Ghalat Hussain, hello Ghalat
Sciences ends in the world of Islam – by Nadeem Paracha: Science ends here Source: Dawn, 20 June 2010 I am itching to get my hands on a recently published book, God Created the Universe by Fatehulla Khan. After reading the review of the book, I can safely assume it
Whiplash: Ziaist Islam takes hold in Pakistan – by Nadeem Paracha: A consensus across various academic and intellectual circles now states that violent entities such as the Pakistani Taliban and assorted sectarian organisations are the pitfalls of policies pursued by the state through its intelligence agencies to safeguard Pakistan’s ‘strategic’
Who is facilitating fascism in Pakistan?: Source: Pakistan Media Watch Reading Nadeem Paracha’s column yesterday, I was immediately reminded of a video clip from Shahid Masood’s TV programme that was recently posted on the blog Let Us Build Pakistan. The clip features a conversation between Shahid Masood
The reactionary republic – by Nadeem Paracha: Source: Dawn, 06 Jun, 2010 Here’s a question: How come whenever there’s a drone attack (in which most of those killed generally are extremists), or a case of perceived obscenity or blasphemy surfaces, street corners are at once filled
Black fell the day – by Nadeem Paracha: This is an aspect of extremism that a lot of its more ‘moderate’ supporters in Pakistan have not comprehended. Educated men and women can be heard and seen concocting outlandish explanations and justifications in a bid to sympathetically define
The sinking middle-ground – by Nadeem F. Paracha: The best was when a friend of mine told me about another such agitated Pakistani’s Facebook page. According to my friend, the following were the Facebook groups the restless young man was a member of: “Proud to be Muslim”;
Meet the hip-liberals: Cultural dynamics of Pakistan fashion industry – by Nadeem Paracha: I have never been able to understand the cultural dynamics of what is called the Pakistan fashion industry, particularly the notion of holding ‘fashion weeks’ which, at least to me, seem to last for months. There is nothing new