Pakistan, April 26 -- As the wheat harvest blankets the Pakistani plains with golden hues, anxiety shadows the air instead of celebration. April 2025 has turned into a season of unrest, disappointment, and strategic missteps. Wheat, long regarded as Pakistan's staple lifeline and a political commodity, is now at the heart of a storm that spans food security, farmer livelihoods, taxation reforms, and flawed market liberalization. At the center of this crisis lies the decision by the federal government to withdraw the long-established minimum support price for wheat, leaving farmers exposed to market fluctuations.

For decades, the minimum support price for wheat served as an anchor, ensuring that farmers had a guaranteed floor price during...