Strategic Playbook continues……….

Another significant driver has been the Army’s deep and widening corporate interest. The Army produces everything from grains to guns and has enormous stakes in fertiliser, housing, transport and petro-chemical sectors. It is this venal interest, more than religion, that keeps the top hierarchy of the Army glued together. This ‘Milbus’ empire helps the Army to dominate the civil society in more ways than one.

The Army has remained in power and sustained its image all these years on the strength of three factors—anti-India (read Hindu) sentiment, dream of Kashmir annexation and the self-claimed status of being the ‘saviour of Pakistan.’ These three factors have been reinforced by the Army’s adoption of Islamic symbols, motifs and jihad over the years. It sees any change in this triple equation as a threat to the Army’s power and sway over the country. It can therefore be argued that the Army is highly unlikely to change its stance on India and Kashmir. But what is not within the power of the Army is to sustain its ‘saviour’ of the nation image. It only needs an already floundering Pakistan to degenerate into a failing State for this ‘saviour’ mirage to vanish and threaten the Army’s position. This failure can take the form of economic distress, political anarchy and deepening of ethnic fault lines, all three are visible more than ever in today’s Pakistan.
A strong military action against dissenting groups within the country can have unpredictable consequences.

The military offensive against the Taliban has left the Pathans deeply aggrieved and has raised the hackles of other communities like Sindhis, who view the large scale migration of Pathans to Sindh, particularly Karachi, as a threat to their interests. The Pathans, taking refuge from the military offensive in their hometowns, cannot but be outraged to see Punjabi soldiers shooting down at them from helicopters with artillery guns—regardless of the fact that the soldiers are targeting, terrorists.

To be continued………