Pakistan may be a challenged democracy, but public opinion still matters – particularly as it has a coalition government formed by traditional rivals who came together because an even more popular leader, Imran Khan, became a bigger challenge. Although in jail, he remains a contender for power. Public opinion is largely shaped by the dominant narrative, which is why the responsibility of the media becomes even greater to communicate the truth to the people.
In Pakistan, the parallel narrative following the Pahalgam attack is that it was a ‘false flag’ operation conducted by the Indian government to distract attention from the anti-Waqf Act agitation. Examples of past incidents such as the Pulwama attack and the then statements of certain Indian politicians in this regard are being cited as proof. In a certain echo system this explanation is an established and irrevocable fact. It is, from time to time, brought into the narrative when promoting a certain brand of politics, both, in Pakistan and India.
Then there is the singling out of Hindus to kill from among the tourists in Pahalgam. In the background of the claim that it was very much an action carried out by Kashmiri ‘resistance fighters’, the action is being related to the ‘divisive’ politics being practiced by the Modi Government in India. A statement by Robert Vadra making this connection is being televised widely as proof. In fact, in the immediate aftermath of the attack, there were also claims that nobody had actually been killed, and it was just a made-up story to defame Pakistan.
With such a narrative, which continues with further embellishments, how are the people of Pakistan going to have any understanding of the truth and expect the right decisions from their government? The suspension of the Indus Water Treaty, which had remained sacrosanct despite many ups and downs in Indo-Pak relations, is going to hit the common people hard, beginning with the farmers. Should they not be asking their government, or rather their military establishment, whether terror is proving an effective weapon against India? Unfortunately, the psychological programming, articulated recently by Army Chief General Asim Munir of Hindus and Muslims being different people, runs deep among the hoi polloi – to the extent that they are unable to protect even their own interests. India has for some years now been keeping more than an arm’s length from Pakistan, but the Pahalgam incident shows that it has not been enough. And there is little hope for the future till such time the fundamental narrative is not corrected.
