Allah Rakhiyo Nindwani was (posthumously) awarded with a civilian award; Hilal-i-Shujat. this Pakistan Day for his bravery and dedication for the educational cause. He was fortunate that how that caught the attention of higher authorities, otherwise most similar cases get washed at the early stages of reporting.
There had been many cases before and after his martyrdom, which failed to capture the limelight. What’s worth thinking about is that the state remains silent within this Kashmore-Kandhkot domain due to causes still within the premises of higher authorities’ heads. These awards cannot fully compensate for the loss endured by the family. Neither these awards eclipse the dark realities of the district, nor are these incidents birth pains for a lasting peace in the region. These incidents evince the losing grip of the state in the region since it’s far better to reclaim the region and stop further mishaps than compensate the victims by awards.
Sukkur IBA University Professor, Dr Muhammad Ajmal Sawand was mercilessly murdered by an ‘unknown armed’ group. He, too, was (posthumously) awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz on 23 March 2024.
Neither case served as a wake-up call to investigate the deeper causes of danger, despair and distortion. ‘’The nightmarish murder of a school teacher, Allah Rakhiyo Nindwani, in Kandhkot testifies to the circumstances being akin to ‘stateless societies’ like Somalia, Libya and Yemen”, is what this writer wrote at that time.
Given the intermittent killings in the region, this land seems a surplus piece of the puzzle since nothing serves as an epiphany that the land and the people belong to the state and their protection– their life and livelihood– are their basic and constitutional rights. Pakistan should not only endeavour to arrange a plebiscite for the decision of Kashmir’s fate, but also leave no stone unturned to bring an already integral part, Kashmore, under its control.
Technically, the latter one is promptly solvable. The extent of deterioration is the land has become a no-go area for a peaceful business community. Khani Wendaye (you will be taken away) has been a common phrase for many years now in the region if one tries to go out after dark.
Because the region is another cog of the machine, the ‘other’ forces have hijacked the entire Katcha (riverine) region into their custody. In other words, it has become their personal fiefdom in recent years. Hence, extortion, loot, theft, kidnapping-for-ransom, honey-trapping, resistance-led forced disappearances are not uncommon. The reported cases of extortion, kidnapping-for-ransom, honey-trapping and resistance-led forced disappearances exceed two dozen in numbers from each surrounding area– Kashmore, Kandhkot, Shikarpur and Ghotki
Particularly, Hindu business community members are targeted for extortion and ransom. An RPG shell was parcelled to Dr Sundar Das as a demand for extortion is a recent case in point. Hell hails here. It burns every corner, it scares every inch, it didn’t break into, the door was left open.
Since the region is a derelict before the state, the infrastructure remains archaic and (supposedly) the Achilles’ heel. Treacherously marshy, ensnaring and less trafficked link roads sre the icing on the cake for the predators. That said, the people are in the Squid Game, acting at their own risk and fully aware of what a single mistake means. The rescuers are nowhere in the scene. Maybe they also know the consequences of the mistake.
The virulent bandit raj reigns supreme. The state’s writ has considerably been compromised, the executional apathy is pervasive and the nexus flourishes greatly. What’s the last plea is initial respite and perpetual peace. What’s demanded is the elimination of bandit raj and restoration of the state’s writ. Plus, the region’s people urge for uncompromised rudimentary and Constitutional rights delivery, and not posthumous national awards.
The lawmen? Unfortunately, they are in the weeds. Or, they pretend to be in the weeds. According to a report, Rs 350 million worth of fuel was spent in probing, targeting and carrying out operations against the criminals in the region. Results? Nothing substantial. Corruption-led inefficiency continues. What really seemed effective to halt the mishaps in the region were the drone-targeted attacks. Some civilians, some operation executives, were kept hostages to coerce the lawman to stop executing drone attacks.
Basically, the district has come under the direct rule of nexuses. What were the tales of medieval Europe are observable realities in the region. The warlord-bandit nexus fuels the fire, burns hard and turns what comes before into ashes. Ironically, the people, unlike phoenixes, are unable to rise from ashes. Sometimes intermediaries, sometimes rescuers, the members of the nexus are star-crossed: so much love within, yet destined for acting independently. Resultantly, the future of the region remains up in the air. Since casting shadows is strictly prohibited, what’s telecast regarding the region is smoke and mirrors.
The justification of the existence and growth of bandits is: they are not the enemies of the state, nor they are against the state, they are in pursuit of vengeance. The claimed evidence are the otherwise unconstitutional jirgas intermediated by the influential people who reconcile the vendettas and compensate killings via mathematical settlements. Specifically, the compensation of a killed man is Rs 2.5 million, of a woman, Rs 5 million, of an abducted woman amid the clash Rs 2 million. These so-called tribal feuds butcher the innocent civilians in the process, abduct hand-to-mouth households for ransom and dump their dead bodies into the Indus River if the demands are not met.
When a vacuum is created due to the absence of state authority, it is always filled by the non-state actors’.Nobel Economics Laureates Daron Acemoglu and James A Robinson call the regions akin to this writing talks about ‘’the absent leviathan’’ in The Narrow Corridor, where the state actors are superseded by the non-state actors and rigorously influence the local affairs. These non-state actors are none other than bandits who claim to be the pursuers of the murderers of their loved one and wreak havoc on the pretext of retribution. The paradoxical nature of Pakistan’s governance provided a carte blanche to these warlords, who, consequently, have turned the region into a mundane hell.
Had the universal, constitutional, human and basic rights delivered to the people hailing from this part of the country, their lives and livelihoods would have been akin to their urban counterparts. Notwithstanding the fact people from this part share the same nationality, the same Constitution, come under the same governance, pay tax to the same institution, they are treated with disproportional discrimination, are denied basic rights and get gradually alienated. Punjab’s medieval form of rule– feudalism– has nearly been eliminated by the state institutions, while Sindh’s Katcha is yet to be set free from its heel.
The virulent bandit raj reigns supreme. The state’s writ has considerably been compromised, the executional apathy is pervasive and the nexus flourishes greatly. What’s the last plea is initial respite and perpetual peace. What’s demanded is the elimination of bandit raj and restoration of the state’s writ. Plus, the region’s people urge for uncompromised rudimentary and Constitutional rights delivery, and not posthumous national awards.
Potential solutions profusely exist. The required epiphany has been missing. ’Changing the perspective that the district’s people aren’t illiterate throngs is another way to progress on the rungs of peace’’ writes this writer, in another place. The supersession of hell into otherwise is only possible when accepted ‘’the people of this part of the country aren’t worlds apart and the executives aren’t in the weeds.
