Killing the Constitution
“The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command” — 1984 by George Orwell PAKISTAN has witnessed military dictators…
LG constitutional amendment
SOMETHING extraordinary, if not unprecedented, has happened in the parliamentary history of Pakistan. The Punjab Assembly passed a unanimous resolution on Oct 28, with significant support from the PTI-aligned opposition, proposing that…
ATA won’t deter terrorism
IN September 2023, 22-year-old Akram (not his real name) was picked up from his home in Karachi by men in plain clothes. He was blindfolded and taken to a building…
Time to deliver
During the last week of September, as Climate Week turned New York City into a hub of panel discussions, protests, and policy announcements, I felt both inspired and unsettled. It…
A constitutional moment
When women parliamentarian moved for leave to introduce the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2025, seeking changes to Articles 51 and 106, it was easy for many to dismiss the motion as…
Reforming 354-A
In July 2025, the Senate in Pakistan amended the Pakistan Penal Code by way of a controversial but caveat-free revision of an otherwise strong law protecting women against acts of…
Politics of boycott
IT is again the season of boycotts. The PTI has decided to boycott the upcoming by-elections in all provinces except KP where it has its own provincial government. The party founder Imran…
Provinces or local government?
RECENT media reports indicate that the ‘27th constitutional amendment’ is likely to divide the existing four federating units into 12 provinces. Before finalising such a decision, parliamentarians must consider a…
Poverty by design
ACCORDING to the World Bank’s new poverty estimates, 44.7 per cent of Pakistan’s population (around 110 million) now lives in poverty. The proportion of people living in extreme poverty has risen…
Pandemonium in assembly
HARDLY a week had passed since the Punjab Assembly Speaker withdrew the suspension orders against 26 PTI-supported MPAs embroiled in rowdyism when another incident of physical assault on a treasury…
