In this episode, Uzair talks to Zaigham Khan about the ongoing polycrisis in Pakistan and the path forward. We focused on the structural drivers of this conflict, in particular the breaking down of the post-Zia social contract that has sustained Pakistan’s political economy for decades. Zaigham argues that the PTI’s popularity is a symptom of the underlying breakdown of this social contract and that repression is unlikely to yield any sustainable stability in the country.

We also discussed why fundamental reforms of the political economy are needed to even sustain the various elite factions ruling the country today.

Zaigham Khan is an anthropologist and political analyst. You can follow him on X @zaighamkhan.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

1:45 What is causing the crisis?

8:50 PTI’s conversion to constitutionalism

18:30 Elite conflict in Pakistan

28:50 Can same page be sustained?

33:45 Why are the elite fighting within?

42:10 Breakdown of the status quo

46:50 Establishment view on repression

56:20 Reading recommendations

Reading recommendations

- The Alif Laila and other mythological books

- Masnavi by Rumi

- Political Conflict in Pakistan by Dr. Mohammad Waseem