Religion and Politics

Religion and politics

Politics is a game of interests and power. The self-interest of political leaders is and partner is mostly the priority. In order to pursue their interests, they use the core beliefs, ideas, and values of society to manipulate the masses as in the case of Pakistan. It has religion and nationalism. In Pakistan religion has been used as tool to gain power and popularity. Starting from the creation of Pakistan.

Firstly, before the creation of Pakistan many Muslim leaders opposed the Pakistan movement. However, they were to change their minds after the partition. Soon after the creation of Pakistan, these religious groups who had opposed it started calling for the country's Islamization and adoption of Islamic laws into the future constitution. This launched the struggle between liberals and Islamists. 

With the Pakistani state adopting a clear Sunni bias in its laws and policies, rivalry between Shias and Sunnis--and even among different Sunni groups--became further entrenched. Soon after independence, Pakistan's first instance of sectarian violence targeted the Ahmadiya community A sustained anti-Ahmadi campaign by Sunni religious groups starting in the 1950s led the government to designate Ahmadis as non-Muslims through a constitutional amendment in 1974.

The late 1970s saw a dramatic growth of politics on religious grounds. General Zia-ul-Haq used Islamic ideology to topple Bhutto’s elected government and later to perpetuate his military dictatorship. Policies of Zia's military regime aggravated Pakistan's slide into sectarian conflict and confrontation. Since the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan in 2001, sectarian violence has been on the rise and killed more than twenty-five hundred people in Pakistan.  In recent years, militant groups like the Taliban have increasingly attacked Shias and Ahmadis as well as Sufi shrines of the Barelvis, who follow a more moderate interpretation of Islam.