The rise of peripheral nationalism in Pakistan and the Pashtun Tahafuz movement

Pakistan is facing a robust wave of nationalism in the shape of the Pashtun Tahafuz (protection) movement. It is not the first time Pakistan is experiencing the outburst of a peripheral nationalist movement. Since the inception of Pakistan in 1947, it has been confronting the multiple challenges stemming out from the ethnic movements. Pakistan was fragmented in 1971 at the hands of the Bengali sub-nationalist movement. The separatist demands in Sindh and the secessionist demands in Baluchistan have been striking the polity. The Pashtun nationalism is emerging as a new daunting challenge in the aftermath of the war on terrorism in the contemporary political and social landscape of Pakistan. This study will make a multi-pronged analysis of the propensity of peripheral nationalist movements in Pakistan and will dissect the rise of the Pashtun Tahafuz movement and its possible implications for state and society in Pakistan.