Broken Federation!

 It is a damning indictment of the Pakistani state's structural failures that it has persistently refused to recognize and integrate its federating units on equitable terms, particularly in the distribution of economic resources. The postcolonial apparatus, inherited from the exploitative framework of the British Raj, was not dismantled—it was simply rebranded, with Punjab assuming the role of internal colonizer. This hegemonic centralization has turned the so-called federation into a façade, where one province dominates at the expense of others, perpetuating systemic political and economic disenfranchisement.

This constitutional arrangement no longer functions as a legitimate social contract; it has been rendered obsolete and hollow, devoid of any relevance as a conflict resolution mechanism. Instead, it has become an instrument of coercion, facilitating elite capture and the unchecked impunity of a ruling class that is shielded from all forms of accountability.

The people—though economically marginalized—are not politically illiterate. They possess an acute civic consciousness. When systemic discrimination becomes embedded in national governance and public policy, it inevitably breeds resistance. Rebellion, under such conditions, is not a deviation—it is a consequence. Punjab cannot continue to behave as a neo-imperial force, extracting wealth from smaller provinces while offering nothing but deprivation and subjugation in return.

This extractive model is politically unsustainable. Unless there is a radical reconfiguration of the state's ideological and administrative orientation—one that dismantles this internal colonialism—the political center will remain vulnerable. Nationalist insurgencies will proliferate, eroding state legitimacy and destabilizing the very foundations of national unity. This is not merely dissent; it is a structural reckoning long overdue.