Rounded Analysis On Contested Issues; Spotlighting Blind Spots; Politics, Religion, Travel, Books
The idea of 'Sufism', which in its present form has little to do with saints and their teachings, has long mutated with the association of those helming shrines purely by virtue of heredity with corrosive power, patronage, and vanity When Mardan Shah, better known as Pir Pagara, died in 2012 in Pakistan’s Sindh province, it … Continue reading How Association With Corrosive Power Mutated Idea Of Sufism
Vladimir Putin felt a sense of humiliation over the collapse of the USSR, the country he deeply loved, and for him, it was the 'greatest geopolitical tragedy of the 20th century' By Sameer Arshad Khatlani Vladimir Putin was in the thick of things when the Communist block crumbled with the fall of the Berlin Wall. … Continue reading What USSR’s Collapse Has To Do With Politics, Wars Of Putin
In 1963, crown prince Faisal told US ambassador Parker T Hart that 'after Allah, we trust America' while Saudis were involved in a confrontation with Egypt over Yemen, highlighting the depth of their relationship that has endured
Many Nepalese conceded the constitution may be imperfect but is federal, republican, and secular and can be amended to accommodate the concerns of disgruntled ethnic groups but there was more to India’s disapproval
Subversion of democracy is increasingly being made to appear legal as the legislatures may sanction and the courts may accept it
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini developed wilayat al-faqih (the rule of the jurist theory), the basis for the Iranian political system, during his 15-year exile in a small house in the warren alleys ringing the shrine of the Prophet's son-in-law, Caliph Imam Ali, in Iraq's Najaf
The country’s westernized founding fathers and those who helmed it for the first three decades loved to have a drink and sat on the periodic demands for prohibition in Pakistan
As the faithful prayed at the mosque in Dubai's Barsha Heights, their right to worship did not impinge on the rights of those going about their business in the vicinity, including women in shorts and mini-skirts
The love-hate relationship between Abdullah and Gandhi family across generations has defined frequent ups and downs in the ties between India and Kashmir
A culture of openness, pluralism, and innovation has transformed the United Arab Emirates into one of the most advanced countries
