The Religiously-Inspired Political Polarization of South Asia the Genesis of the Creation of Pakistan

In 1880, Sir William Patrick Andrew published “Our Scientific Frontier”, a book containing the essence of his colossal work stretched over four decades of career as the father of British India Railways. Conceding to his recommendations, dogged by obsessive fear of the Russian invasion of India (Thorburn, 1894), the northwest frontier region of the Indian Peninsula, popularly known as the “Borderlands” was separated from the mainland India and, created as an independent state; named Pakistan in 1947 to serve as a “Frontline State” juxtaposed to the “Buffer State” of Afghanistan (Andrew, 1880) under the garb of an independent homeland for Muslims in India on religious grounds (Wink, 1991) (Chandra, 1997 ). However, being suspicious of imminent revolt by the local population, especially the Punjabi peasantry resulting from the British purge during their rule, Sir Andrew strategized the concept of fragmenting the “already polarised” Muslim community into two distinct segments; the elite class as the ruling component unflinchingly loyal to the British and the non-elite segment, though in majority but clutched by “the devised mechanism” of the religion of Islam. Conceiving the idea of “Bigoted Fanaticism”, he envisaged an impenetrable demographic defensive line against any invader from the northwest (Afghanistan) and the west (Iran) (Andrew, 1880). Based on his conclusion that “in these border lands (Pakistan) to have a rival in prestige and power would be dangerous; to have a superior would be impossible”, the British nurtured the chosen elite to rule the country but, geo-strategically serve the western interests. This is how the legacy of the British rule is still entrenched in which “the Religio- Populist Dogmatism” plays the most crucial role in the national politics. A study had been conducted to investigate the genesis of the religio-populist dogmatism in Pakistan which has always been employed as the most potent instrument in political campaigns in Pakistan by every political party irrespective its religious inclinations.