BetweenTheLines

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook W hen a rightist coalition bagged 11 per cent of votes in the 2002 Pakistan national elections, it was the first time conservatives managed a double-digit vote share in the country's electoral history. The conservatives had never won more than five per cent votes earlier. The trend continued after 2002. Much of the support the conservatives got in 2002 stemmed from anti-US sentiments sweeping Pakistan after military ruler Pervez Musharraf signed up for the war on terror in Afghanistan post 9/11 attacks.  Also Read | Clubbed With Urdu-Speakers, Biharis Retain Identity In Pakistan Pakistan’s biggest conservative party Maulana Fazlur Rehman-led Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F)’s vote share dwindled to 3.2% in the 2013 polls. Yet Rehman remained part of Islamabad’s power structure even as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had a comfortable majority after repeated fractured mandates. Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, the rightist coalition, and newly-formed Tehreek-e

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook A t the 2014 Bangalore Literature Festival, I got the first real sense of the bursting of the bubble of spaces one could relatively speak one's mind freely in. The event ended on a bit of a disappointing note when a hostile crowd surrounded us over the inconvenient perspective on Kashmir. Overall, the festival was a memorable experience. I moderated a session and got to meet some interesting people with the highlight being the meeting with Chinese writer Lijia Zhang and getting to know her fascinating story. Over coffee at the festival's writers' lounge, Lijia told me how she was pulled out of school at 16 to work at a factory to make ends meet in the impoverished China of the 1980s. But she did not give up. Lijia would struggle to go on and learn English, circumvent control in China, overcome the trauma of its manifestations such as period policing to realise her dream of becoming an author and journalist. Also Read | Why India Su

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook I n the second year of my decade-long stint with the Times of India, I got what I then thought was my first big break — covering the 2008 Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. My mentor late Ranjan Roy agreed to depute me for the coverage at the request of Rashmee Roshan Lall, who was then the paper's weekend editor. I was at the top of my game thanks to Ranjan and Rashmee's support and encouragement at the beginning of the best phase of my professional life. I could not wait and hopped on to a bus as soon as I arrived in Srinagar to Pattan near Srinagar to meet Member Of Parliament Abdul Rashid Shaheen, who was contesting the elections on a National Conference (NC) ticket. Shaheen, who had seen better days in politics, appeared downcast. He was in his living room addressing half-a-dozen supporters when I walked in. Shaheen spoke about NC's heyday when iconic Sheikh Abdullah, the NC founder, held sway over the Kashmiris. Also Read

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook A bdul Kadir Khanzada represented Karachi’s Orangi Town in Pakistan's parliament when Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of the eastern Indian state of Bihar, visited his country in 2012. He wanted to invite the visiting leader to his constituency given the composition of the area, where a bulk of the voters have roots in Bihar. Khanzada told me violence uprooted his family from Alwar in Rajasthan at the time of partition in 1947 when I called him for a Times of India piece on Kumar's visit. But since 70 per cent of his constituents were of Bihari origin, he was keen on inviting Kumar. Khanzada emphasised his Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), which represents Pakistan's Urdu-speaking people, has always supported peace with India and hoped Kumar’s visit would help the process.  Also Read | How Kinship Bonds Impact Pakistan's Electoral Politics Kumar visited the archaeological site of Mohenjo-Daro, a temple, and addressed a Hindu pan

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook P akistan's first-ever National Security Policy (NSP) has understandably hit the headlines in India. As The Indian Express pointed out, India has been mentioned more than any other nation—at least 16 times—in the 62-page document. Prepared after what has been described as a seven-year strategic thought, the NSP was adopted in late December. It cites a policy of peace at home and abroad and says Islamabad wishes to improve its relationship with New Delhi even as it acknowledges the rise of Hindutva-driven politics in India impacts Pakistan’s immediate security. The policy cautions against Indian leadership's political exploitation of a policy of belligerence towards Pakistan and says it threatens military adventurism and non-contact warfare. Also Read |  India-Pakistan Tensions Are Irreversible For Now The reactions to NSP in India ranged from usual contempt towards Pakistan to surprise over the peace overtures. No matter what they were

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook D eaf and mute Indian woman Geeta returned home in 2015 from Pakistan after 12 years thanks largely to Salman Khan-starrer Indian film Bajrangi Bhaijaan’s success. The reel life story of the film’s main character, Shahida aka Munni, mirrored that of Geeta’s real life. Geeta was found alone at the Lahore Railway Station after she got off the Samjautha Express from New Delhi. She mysteriously boarded the cross-border train after attending a fair on the Indian side of Punjab, where her father worked as a mason. Likewise, Munni gets off a train in the film while chasing a sheep as her mother falls asleep en route to India for pilgrimage.  Also Read | As Imran Khan Faces 4th-Year Itch, Will He Complete His Term The waves the film made with its rare sensitive portrayal of cross-border characters and parallels it drew with Geeta’s story stirred an inept bureaucracy into action. The urgency worked when Geeta identified her family in a remote Bihar riv

Sameer Arshad Khatlani Follow  on Facebook A nother Pakistani prime minister appears to be facing an unceremonious removal from power. Pakistan's media has been abuzz with reports about a possible 'deal' between the country's military establishment and Prime Minister Imran Khan's opponents, including his arch-rival Nawaz Sharif, and the latter's possible return from self-imposed exile in the UK. The speculation has coincided with talk of threats to Khan's government amid anger in the country over price rise and misgovernance. The major reverses Khan's party suffered in its stronghold of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in the local bodies elections and an upbeat mood in the Opposition camp have also fueled the speculation.  ALSO READ: Religion Is Too Important To Be Left To Clerics Shehbaz Sharif, the Opposition Leader in Pakistan's National Assembly, on Thursday reflected the mood when he claimed the end of Khan's government was a matter of time. He