Knocking on the Capital

Field Marshal Ayub Khan’s decision to move the Capital to Islamabad from Karachi was based on the premise of convenience with his hometown. Little did he know that this serene location would turn into a hotbed of parochial politics and a hub of mysterious decision-making, and that too in a perpetual confrontation with the peripheries of the State! Despite the fact that the 18th constitutional amendment had bestowed the provinces with autonomy and financial vibrancy, they still look towards the Capital for redressing their sorrows and stalemates. So are in the league: the AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan.

An apolitical protest in Azad Kashmir, one of the most tactfully organised in resilience, was mulling to march on the Federal Capital in the early days of October. It is only after some better sense prevailed that the agitators were managed, after promising them of their due demands by a beleaguered Federation pushed to the wall. The Kashmiris are trend-setters, and their success story can be replicated by other provincial entities, simmering with grievances against the Centre.

Then came another tap, stirring palpitation in the corridors of power as the well-entrenched allies in the federal government were seen with daggers drawn at each other. The PPP and the PMLN, for a while, begged to differ, and were in a stage-managed spat over how to retain control over their fiefdoms on issues of flood compensation and water rights. It was primarily monetary benefits that each wanted to cajole for their constituents, with a bigger slice going wayward in shadows, though, as usual.

Punjab chief minister is unrelenting as she eyes the throne of Islamabad as her next power-play destination. She has reasons to assert herself, as apparently the potent and the three-time prime minister are on her side. But that, for many, is a far-fetched proposition, per se. Politics, as the art of the impossible, these days is subservient to anomalous happenings. The politically mature PPP under the canopy of the Presidency knows how to play the cards. Thus, it was no surprise that things climbed down for a thaw. Chickens come home to roost, anyway.