Shatranj ke Khiladi

There is a well known short story of the eminent Hindi writer Munshi Premchand called ‘Shatranj ke Khiladi’.

It is about two noblemen, Mir saheb and Mirza saheb, in the court of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Avadh ( who ruled from 1847 to 1856 ), who are so engrossed in playing chess, while the people of Avadh are so engrossed in dancing, music, cock fighting, etc, that they are oblivious to the looming danger of the approaching British army.( which soon occupied Avadh in 1856 and exiled the Nawab and his nobles to Calcutta ).

The great film director Satyajit Ray has made a famous film about it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3Fgm0yaWbA&pp=ygUTc2hhdHJhbmoga2Uga2hpbGFkaQ%3D%3D

The present scenario in Pakistan reminds one of this story. The two main political groups in Pakistan, the PTI ( Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf ) led by Imran Khan, and the PDM ( Pakistan Democratic Movement ), which is an alliance of former PM Nawaz Sharif’s PMLN, and the PPP which had been founded by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, are at daggers drawn, with no holds barred. Imran Khan, and his Sancho Panzas like Fawad Chaudhary, often begin their speeches by calling PDM leaders ‘chor daaku’.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0fpXDhD5Ec&pp=ygUnaW1yYW4ga2hhbiBjYWxscyBwZG0gbGVhZGVycyBjaG9yIGRhYWt1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWq0YEi9DY4&pp=ygU4cGFrIHNlbmF0ZSBmYXdhZCBjaGF1ZGhyeSBtdXNoYWhpZHVsbGFoIGtoYW4gIGNob3IgZGFha3U%3D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7KthpUey4I&t=439s

The latter return the compliment by calling Imran Khan an anarchist and a ‘fitna’ ( mischief monger ), bent on destroying Pakistan

https://www.nation.com.pk/15-Sep-2022/imran-khan-was-launched-to-create-anarchy-and-destruction-maryam

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETcW3c_Gc7o&pp=ygUpcmFuYSBzYW5hdWxsYWggaW1yYW4ga2hhbiBzcHJlYWRpbmcgY2hhb3M%3D

While this political imbroglio is intensifying, the country stares at bankruptcy and record inflation. Yet these Mir sahebs and Mirza sahebs ( the PTI and the PDM ) are so engrossed in their petty squabbles that they are unaware about the looming danger, as mentioned in the article below.

https://indicanews.com/2022/10/25/pakistan-martial-law-justice-katju/

Talleyrand said of the Bourbons (the French royal family ): “The Bourbons saw nothing, remembered nothing, and forgot nothing.” Most of the Pakistani politicians today remind one of the Bourbons.

One can only hope they dont meet with the same end as the Bourbons.

 

 

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