Devolution of powers to the lower level or making smaller administrative units is certainly Amrit Dhara, but talking about making new provinces is necessarily a new Pawara. Amrit Dhara or Elixir-e-Azam is that conceptual medicine from which all diseases can be cured. Giving powers to the district or division after the center and the province can remove the distances between the government and the public. “Pawara” is a famous word of Punjabi; to put a Pawara means to cause a dispute or to create a problem. Talking about new provinces is equivalent to putting a Pawara; this issue is a controversial matter like the construction of Kala Bagh Dam and canals. In Sindh, the ancient inhabitants there are severely against the division of the province. Currently, there is no major opposition to the division of Punjab into several provinces, but a severe objection to the Peoples Party is that you are against the division of Sindh and in favor of the division of Punjab; rather, you have already divided your party’s organization into Southern and Central Punjab, this is a clear policy contradiction. Muslim League N, Tehreek-e-Insaf, and even Jamaat-e-Islami are sitting after dividing Punjab into different parts within their respective parties, as if the iron is hot only in Punjab, which can easily be struck in the province of Punjab itself. Chief Minister Balochistan Sarfraz Bugti is publicly against the division of Balochistan; how can the elements who till yesterday merged the tribal areas into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa talk about dividing it into provinces after just two or four years?

The Interior Minister has said that this system has collapsed, so actually its reason is this very thing that the roots of this system are not deep in the level; local government and municipal bodies are in the street and neighborhood and closest among the people. Article 140A of the Constitution is incomplete and demands interpretation; for this very reason, Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1976 gathered municipal experts from all over the world in Lahore and requested proposals on the system at the local level. The humble one possesses the book consisting of the speeches of this international conference; as if at that time also the deficiency regarding local government was being felt in the Constitution, this deficiency is present even today. The 18th Amendment took powers from the federation and made the province a new dictator, and the cities and villages of our districts remained deprived of powers and funds. General Pervez Musharraf brought the best, most effective, and highly empowered local government system in the history of Pakistan, but in this system, drawbacks like lack of Capacity, that is, capability and accountability came forward; if this system is to be run, then private economic experts and architects will have to be included in this system, only babus cannot generate income for this system, for this there will be a need for modern finance officers. If this very system, with reform and improvement, is not taken to the district level, then for now it should be taken to the divisional level. Capability and accountability are difficult in a district, but possible at the divisional level. My kind, much wiser and superior to me, Mian Amer Mahmood is continuously presenting the proposal to make new provinces with arguments. This humble one is less knowledgeable than him, but as a common citizen holds the right to difference of opinion. The idea and philosophy of making new provinces is obviously fundamentally to make Pakistan strong. But in the view of the humble one, making new provinces is not only a deviation from history, geography, and experience, but in fact, it is the beginning of breaking Pakistan. Whatever you do in Sindh, separate provinces of Muhajir majority and Sindhi majority will be formed. Nature has made this arrangement that at a time when Altaf Hussain was running a secret movement for independence in the name of a City-State, Sindhis were the guarantee of Pakistan’s security, and when G.M. Syed wanted to make Sindhudesh under Jai Sindh, Muhajirs were the guarantee of Pakistan’s security and unity. So Nature itself has established a system of balance there so that Pakistan remains safe and secure. Today if the Peoples Party loses in interior Sindh and Jai Sindh wins there, then the Sindhi province will automatically become independent. In Karachi today also the supporters of Altaf have not finished. Tomorrow if God forbid some movement to make a City-State starts again, will it be possible to stop this movement by conducting a military operation again? As if from the division of Sindh, Pakistan will become weak, unbalanced, and divisible. The Baloch area of Balochistan is already insurgency-ridden; the day free elections take place there, the separatist sentiment in the Baloch majority province can incite them to rebellion. Nature has balanced Balochistan also with Baloch and Pashtun population; Pashtuns are not included in the terrorism of so-called independence and are the biggest obstacle against the so-called independence of Balochistan, but if a Pashtun province is formed, then many new movements of independence will take birth and create new problems. Content yourselves with the Baloch-Pashtun balance that God has established in Balochistan.

The case of Punjab is separate from all; seemingly it looks easiest to twist the nose of Punjab. But remember, the reaction of Punjab comes with delay, and when it comes, then it changes everything. The historical fact is that Punjab as an independent country came into existence 182 years before the creation of Pakistan when the Sikhs captured Lahore in 1765 AD; from that time itself Punjab became an independent country. Historically, the identity of Punjab is older than all provinces; whether anyone accepts it or not, the most powerful shield of Pakistan is Punjab, and the brave youth of Punjab are giving the most sacrifices for the defense and stability of Pakistan. The division of Punjab will cause a hole in the defensive shield and become a cause of weakening the identity of the strongest army. Punjab sacrificed its identity, language, and culture for Pakistan so that Pakistan becomes strong, but remember, the division of Punjab will promote Punjabi nationalism in this province, which is currently completely non-existent, but its seeds are certainly present somewhere in the hearts, which at any time can become a crop.

Muslim League N is a Punjab-centric political party; this year it has agreed to take approximately 500 billion less from the federation out of the development budget; if it accepts the division of Punjab into several provinces as well, its power will become weak and its politics will suffer weakness. Tehreek-e-Insaf also has been getting the majority from Punjab itself; if it agreed to the division of Punjab, several regional parties would finish it. The Peoples Party is already alienated from Punjab due to its Sindh-centric policy; as if if Punjabis are mistakenly ignored considering them cockroaches by political parties, these sleeping lions might awaken and raise the slogan of “Jaag Punjabi Jaag” (Wake up Punjabi, wake up).

Whether countries or provinces, cities or villages, everyone is connected to their history, culture, and geography; changes made forcefully in history, culture, and geography are not sustainable, their reaction is dangerous. It seems that a referendum is ready; the real issue will be of the question. If the question of making provinces is included, a new Pawara will occur, and if the question of transferring new administrative units or powers to the divisional or district level is included, this will be Amrit Dhara. Referendums historically hold a bad reputation. The prayer is only this that this time the referendum becomes the foundation of Amrit Dhara and not of a new Pawara…!!