A political legacy forged in courage
In 1967, Pakistan witnessed the birth of a political movement that had been gathering strength long before it found a name. The debates surrounding the 1965 war and the Tashkent…
COP-ing elite capture
Pakistan is not suffering a resource crisis. It is suffering a power crisis. The problem is not that the country lacks land, water, forests or even the capacity to adapt…
A poet’s odyssey
SHORTLY after the British poet laureate Ted Hughes died in 1998, it was rumoured that the shortlist for a successor included Tony Harrison. Unlikely as that might have been, given…
Between legal rights and lived realities
Despite legislative advances like the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018, the reality for most transgender Pakistanis is far removed from legal promises. From bullet-riddled bodies found on highways…
Karachi floods
IT rained heavily in 2020. And now it is 2025. The rains have once again devastated Karachi. We have witnessed flooded streets, huge traffic jams, students, working-class employees, motorcyclists and…
Lyari rising ( Part – II )
In Lyari, one of Karachi’s oldest neighbourhoods – famous for footballers, boxers and musicians, yet too often reduced in the national imagination to violence and neglect – a young writer…
Economic populism
The Democratic Party has significant work to do if it hopes to bounce back from its 2024 electoral defeat. Making inroads with the working class is the only way possible,…
Criminalising child marriage
CHILD marriage persists in Pakistan for many reasons, and ending the practice requires measures that are sensitive to the problem’s complexity. Debates on child marriage tend to reduce this complexity…
Beyond growth: Pakistan’s war against poverty, privilege, and the digital divide
Let’s not sugarcoat it — Pakistan is a land of jarring contrasts. In one part of town, a billionaire is escorted in a bulletproof Land Cruiser. Across the bridge, a…
Recycling budget revenues
Pakistan’s federal budget for FY2025–26 reveals more than just fiscal arithmetic. It reflects a shifting economic terrain shaped by IMF oversight, macroeconomic consolidation and the intensifying demands of climate resilience…
