PASTHUNS LEADERSHIP: A HISTORICAL REVIEW

Pasthuns have been living for centuries in the distant mountains and valleys of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Despite being more than 50 million on both sides of the border, Pasthuns have remained a tribal society, where each individual is loyal to his clan only. Divided they may live but for invaders, they are one unified nation, once the crisis is over, each tribe goes back to its enclave with its leaders subsiding in their individual tribe. In such a way of life, where every tribe is independent and loyal to itself only, crisis of leadership is natural to arise.

Sher Shah Sori can be considered the first Pasthun King. Sher Shah was a soldier, who became tutor to the Mughal prince and then minister in Mughal court, but soon he controlled the kingdom of Bihar (India). In 1539, he defeated the Mughal Emperor Humayun and assumed the title of Sher Shah. Sher Shah rose from the rank of private tutor to the King of India, reorganized the administration and army including improvement of police and postal services in his kingdom, however he could not produce a competent heir to carry on his legacy.

Lodhis ruled India from 1451 to 1526 AD. Lodhis were originally Ghilzai (Khilji) from Afghanistan and the dynasty was founded by Bhalul Khan Lodhi. Bahlul Lodhi was an able administrator; who quelled rebellion and put various Afghan chiefs on important posts to consolidate his regime. He nominated his son Siknader Shah, who had a strong and charismatic personality that won him over various Afghan chieftains. Siknader successor, Ibrahim Lodhi failed all expectations and lost his kingdom at the hands of Babur in 1526.

During the Mogul rule, the Pasthuns tribesmen were crucial defenders of Mogul Empire from the West. Khushal Khan Khattak was famous warrior poet, who fought for Pasthun unification during the revolt of 1672. The initial Mughal expedition met a miserable fate with only four men surviving to tell the wretched tale. The revolt led to almost total collapse of the Mughal authority in the Frontier region until Aurangzeb took the charge and overcame the resurrection at a heavy cost.

The British fought number of wars in North West Frontier Province including two campaigns in Afghanistan with disastrous consequences. After losing these wars, British resorted to install puppet rulers, however it did not improve the political stability nor could British resolve the Pasthun problem till Pakistan independence. Soviet repeated the same mistake of installing puppet rulers, such as Karmal and Najib that were not representative of Pasthuns. The result was collapse of the Afghanistan, as soon as Russians left. Similar to Karmal and Najib, Karazi is also standing in the air without any feet. Being an excellent actor, Karzai wears designer clothes and lectures flawlessly about democracy and human rights along with his cabinet of war lords, drug lords and declared criminals amid the blooming poppy fields and unstoppable bombing. The crucial question is, when West will stop making pipe dreams? Democracy was established in the West after the struggle of hundreds of years; while Afghanistan has always been a fiefdom of warlords, what Western democracy has to do with Afghanistan?

Pasthuns like tough and charismatic leaders; who can maintain Pasthun sense of freedom.

For centuries despite facing perdition, Pasthun leaders fought back and suffered for the Pasthun cause. Sher Shah, Ahmad Shah Durrani, Khushal Khan Khattak and Bacha Khan, all were strong and enigmatic leaders, who were willing to battle for Pasthun cause with enemies stronger than them. A true leader is willing to stand and suffer and steer his people in peace and in crisis. A leader may not always be winner, such as Khushal Khan, who lost war, but made Mughal suffer profoundly. Similarly Bacha Khan was not victorious in finding a homeland, but he suffered for Pasthun cause that made him a great leader.

Unfortunately Pasthuns leadership for centuries revolved around a personality that yielded good result as long as the leader was in command. After the demise of leader; there was no legacy or institution to take forward the process of nation building, the result has been a tribal society stuck up in medieval times. The West has to develop a viable strategy for Pasthuns in Afghanistan and Pakistan and need to create a leadership that has not only popular support and but can help in unifying all the warring factions on both sides of the border; failing which will be a dreadful omen for the world. Pasthuns may have not been united politically due to their intrinsic culture; however they were always united on a single cause, chase out the invaders at all cost-with or without a leader.