Pakistan’s tragedy did not begin with its economic crisis of today, nor with the imprisonment of its popular leaders. It began in 1947 — at the very moment of its so-called “freedom.” While the British lowered the Union Jack and departed, they left behind a structure designed to keep real power in the hands of a select few. In effect, the East India Company’s system of control was replaced not by a genuine people’s government, but by a new overseer: the Pakistan Army.
The Colonial Blueprint
During the British Raj, fewer than 20,000 British officials ruled over 400 million people across United India. They achieved this domination by grooming local elites — feudal landlords, princely families, and a compliant officer corps — to govern on their behalf. This was the “divide and rule” policy: a system of privilege and class hierarchy in which the British maintained power indirectly while enriching loyal collaborators.
When the British departed in 1947, it was not entirely out of generosity. Britain emerged victorious from World War II, but exhausted and dependent on American support. The United States — seeking to reshape the post-war order — pushed Britain to grant independence to its colonies, including India and Pakistan. Yet, the handover was not clean. Britain, in concert with its new ally Washington, ensured that key levers of control remained intact.
One masterstroke of this design was to leave the Kashmir dispute unresolved. This ensured India and Pakistan would remain locked in a costly and endless rivalry, their development crippled by military spending and political instability.
Two Countries, Two Paths
In India, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru recognized the danger of this inherited colonial architecture. India’s new constitution stripped the armed forces of political authority, placing them firmly under civilian control. Laws were rewritten to dismantle the aristocratic privileges of princely states and feudal lords. Equal rights, universal education, and electoral reforms gradually created a broad-based democracy.
Today, India is not without flaws, but it remains a functioning democracy with a diversified economy and an army that stays in the barracks.
Pakistan took the opposite path. Instead of reforming colonial-era laws, it strengthened them — giving unprecedented power to the military, particularly the army chief, who became an unacknowledged monarch. The feudal elite retained their grip, now in partnership with military rulers. The same families — the colonial collaborators of the past — continue to rotate in and out of government, whether under martial law or manipulated civilian rule.
The Army’s State, Not the People’s
Pakistan’s military has become not only the arbiter of political power but also the country’s largest economic empire. Through military-run conglomerates like the Fauji Foundation, Army Welfare Trust, and Defence Housing Authority, the army controls vast swathes of Pakistan’s real estate, industry, and services — wealth that should serve the people, not enrich generals.
Elections are rigged. Civilian leaders who challenge the military’s supremacy are silenced or imprisoned — as is the case today with Imran Khan. Thousands of political workers languish in jails. Abductions, extrajudicial killings, and media censorship have become tools of governance. The military serves its foreign patrons — whether in London, Washington, or elsewhere — while receiving praise, aid, and IMF bailouts that keep Pakistan dependent and resource-rich lands open to exploitation.
The Cost of Submission
The consequences are plain: a ruined economy, brain drain, and international humiliation. Pakistanis are told to sacrifice, while those in uniform and their civilian cronies live in palatial comfort. We have traded one colonial master for another, with our own army acting as the intermediary.
Unless this cycle is broken, IMF loans will keep the economy afloat just enough to extract our mineral wealth, strategic location, and labor — while ordinary Pakistanis sink deeper into poverty. The military will continue to rule from behind the façade of democracy, rewarding itself with red-carpet receptions abroad while offering only repression at home.
The Way Forward
History offers a clear lesson: real freedom requires dismantling the colonial structures of control. Pakistan must:
- Reform the Constitution and Army Act — place the armed forces strictly under civilian authority.
- Break the Feudal Grip — implement land reforms and end the political dominance of hereditary elites.
- Guarantee Equal Rights and Rule of Law — ensure independent judiciary, free media, and protections for political opposition.
- Return the Army to the Barracks — its sole mission should be defending borders and eliminating terrorism, not running businesses or deciding election outcomes.
Pakistan’s survival depends on a national awakening. Our people must recognize that no savior in uniform or foreign ally will hand us democracy. It must be demanded, built, and defended by Pakistanis themselves.
If we do not act, we will remain a nation where generals govern, politicians obey, and the people are ruled — not served.
