Opinion

Railways pleaded with the saint to let them take their line past his home, but he was adamant: they had to go around.

Textbook board editors have no patience with niceties of fiction; state ideological considerations are more valuable.

While funds allocated to legislators are part of development budget, no PC-I is prepared for schemes they identified.

Zardari stands to benefit politically in the run-up to general elections, claiming he stood up to US bullying.

It is time that the brass hats realise time for their shenanigans is over, that they are servants of the country.

Combine results of by-elections, Senate elections, it is a victory for traditional politics, no trace, hint of change.

HEC gave 40% of its ranking points to research, giving a higher rating to those who played its game during the 2000s.

Why cases on presidential corruption are more important than extrajudicial killings, torture, disappearances beats me?

Pakistan has strong reservations about India, but there needs to be introspection on most issues from its perspective

Women are discriminated against in the country at large, but in Balochistan they are discriminated by the state.

Poverty can be reduced by empowering women in communities to find their own answers, organically solve problems.

In order to promote women’s economic empowerment, access to resources becomes a prime driver.

With hostility to foreign forces 'infecting’ Afghan security forces, US claims of progress, lack conviction.

The saddest development of the drone wars is how fragmented we have become over the issue.

Almost 28 per cent of 440 respondents expressed ‘dissatisfaction’ or ‘deep dissatisfaction’ over lawyers...

Wasting resources is a national pastime. It’s just that some people do it better than others.

It is a tragedy that 'siyasat' today has a pejorative aspect and Urdu sometimes uses it as an insult.

All major states, Pakistan, India, China, western powers should ensure Afghanistan will not lapse back into anarchy.

The government should resolve all Baloch issues on an emergency basis, with deeds rather than hollow words.

My major criticism against ranking is that all universities should not be ranked according to the same criteria.

Wonder if Sharmeen's accomplishment will effectively help prevent this form of brutal violence against women.

The country is dealing with what democracy invariably produces in the early stages: poor governance.

A robust Pakistan-Iran relationship too would one day be seen as a factor of peace and prosperity.

Achieving the space for sovereignty requires paradigmatic changes in economic, foreign and security policies.

In Pakistan one’s religious faith, or lack of one, has become sufficient to warrant execution and murder.

Blocking/banning the internet is not being done to save us from “evil” porn or blasphemous content.

There is a very attractive bilingual quality to the urban Pakistani because of his knowledge of Urdu.

The sheer moral case for unequivocally speaking out, fighting murder of Shias is relatively basic, unimpeachable.

By 2015 UK will support 4 million children in school, recruit, train 90,000 teachers, provide 6 million text books.

It is clear that addressing human rights violations was never the intention of Dana's congressional hearing.

Ideally, we don’t defend; we attack. We are not inside a castle; we are outside the castle walls trying to break in.

One telling trait of kleptocrats is their use of their country’s treasury, as they would use personal bank accounts.

No one is safe in this country other than the men who perpetuate bias, bigotry and hatred.

Viewing Pakistan as founded on the principle that minorities be protected may contain a way forward for our nation.

The saint, who the driver thought was good, actually posed obstacles in building of a road, betterment of district.

The intolerance bred during the Cold war has irrevocably injured the social, moral fabric of Pakistani society.

How could Shahbaz Bhatti be a martyr in a country where he was merely a ‘minority’?

India is considered as the economic good guy, China the bad guy which buys US treasuries than make direct investments.

A university is a hub of knowledge creation and research, and it must have full-time faculty with advanced degrees.

Produce anything on militancy and at the very worst, you will get a pat on the back.

Ismail Pasha: For a gambler who had lost every game, the Khedive had not done badly, there are lessons here aplenty.

If women are to truly be empowered, they must be in control of their reproduction.

Lahore transport problems revolve around vehicle use, population growth. BRT does not resolve this, nor cover the city

Being fair-skinned, having a couple of generals, senior bureaucrats, politicians on first-name basis works well.

Sharmeen showed that despite all the efforts of men in this country to oppress women, she persevered, gave us hope.

Hira Mandi by Claudine Le Tourneur d’Ison is a fictional account of the life of the son of a courtesan of the area.

The government and armed forces have failed miserably in eliminating extremism and non-tolerant behaviour.

When it comes to US foreign policy, there is little to distinguish between Presidential candidates of either party.

After taking over US wiped out Iraq’s traditional, sustainable agriculture, replaced it with a gm-seed industrial one.

The East appears on periphery of western education, when it does, it is always through the eyes of the discoverers.