Pakistan, July 9 -- History would record the decade-long dictatorial era of General Ziaul Haq [from 1977 to 1988] as the time when the germs of fundamentalism started germinating in the marrow of this country, before turning into a cancer and finally eating out the vitals of our socio-political system.

Our social life is marred by various arbitrary interdictions and taboos imposed on us by sanctions of the clergy. The rapid rise of the Taliban friendly mindset and its influence on our politics has no relevance to its support in the masses, keeping in view its meagre presence in the parliament. However, the fact remains that the backers of the Taliban ideology keep growing in the Pakistani society with every passing day, almost three deca...