Bradistan Calling

The recent cricket victory in the T20 World Cup brought out the green in all of us. Including us in Bradistan. I too left my intellectual hat at home and donned the green flag to go on the street and celebrate with the Bradistan boyz and girlz, even though I would not consider myself a ‘flag waving nationalist.’

I don’t follow Pakistan cricket team fanatically; certainly not like I did back when I was much younger during the 1992 World Cup. I still remember how the Pakistanis, all over the world, spontaneously came out on the streets singing dancing, waving their flags, congratulating and hugging strangers. It was similar story this time after the T20 World Cup. On the streets of Bradistan, even the English, Indian Gujarati and Bosnians joined in the chants of ‘Boom Boom Afridi.’ It seemed, once again, that we were all green at heart!

Adil Najam

Gen. Pervez Musharraf may or may not be the one leader who did the most good (or bad) for Pakistan. But he may well be the one who sings the best.

This video of a musical duet with Ustad Hamid Ali Khan recently aired on TV channel Duniya and has been doing the rounds over email, and originally recorded at a private gathering, has probably been seen by many of you already. I am no great expert on these things, but personally I think he did a good job of singing (certainly better than I or most people I know can). I would give him even higher score for good humor and confidence for doing so in public. And I must say that I really like his taste in music for the song he chose to sing along on.

Adil Najam

In an important development on the Gojra violence against a Christian community an anti-terrorist court has taken action and the judge sent 61 accused of the incident on judicial remand and six others were granted 14 days physical remand (that is, sent to jail).

The developments are still ongoing, the case is still pending, and there is talk of political motivations. Tension in the region, which was already high, has gone higher. But the fact that the court has taken criminal action against those who carried out such violence – murder and arson – is a good sign. The investigation of whether anyone had, in fact, desecrated the Quran still needs to be completed, but the fact that mob violence has been seen as exactly that – no matter what the cause – and is being dealt with by the court is a positive sign.