When federalism is hostage to one province, the nation pays the price.
Pakistan is hostage to imbalance. Punjab, with 173 National Assembly seats, holds a de facto veto over constitutional amendments, financial allocations, and national policy. Lahore thrives as a fortress of privilege; southern Punjab and the Saraiki belt remain neglected, poor, and politically invisible. This is not oversight, it is structural capture. Denying Saraikistan is not debate; it is monopoly preservation.
Saraiki Is Not a Dialect
For decades, elites have claimed Saraiki is merely a Punjabi dialect. This is not linguistics; it is suppression. Saraiki spans Darya Khan, Bhakkar, Multan, Mianwali, Dera Ismail Khan, Tank, Bannu, Lakki, Paharpur, Barkhan, parts of Sindh, south Punjab, and parts of India. It has its own grammar, phonology, literature, and folklore, a full cultural universe. A dialect cannot claim such breadth; a people’s language does.
The irony is staggering: Punjab is named after Punjabi, Sindh after Sindhi, Balochistan after Balochi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after Pashto. Globally, nations and provinces bear the names of languages, France, Turkiye, Russia, Arabia. Yet Saraiki is singled out. Counting Saraiki as Punjabi inflates Punjab’s numbers, strengthens its 173-seat monopoly, and entrenches its veto. This is political erasure, not scholarship.
Economics and Extraction
Southern Punjab powers Pakistan’s economy. Cotton, mangoes, citrus, and wheat feed industry and exports. Yet banks, universities, ginning factories, and hospitals are concentrated in Lahore, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala. Roads crumble; hospitals are sparse; higher education is distant. Wealth flows outward while communities remain invisible. This is systematic extraction. Saraikistan is not a regional grievance, it is a federal necessity.
Civilization, Identity, and Survival
Saraiki is linked to the Indus Valley civilization, Harappan, Mohenjo-daro, Mehrgarh. Its poetry, music, and oral traditions embody centuries of distinct cultural memory. Khawaja Ghulam Farid’s verses and Sachal Sarmast’s compositions are distinctly Saraiki. Denying Saraiki is denying history. Language is identity; erasure is oppression.
Breaking the Tyranny of the Majority
Punjab’s dominance exemplifies “majority tyranny.” It concentrates power, silences dissent, and ossifies inequality. Saraikistan would restore federal balance, empower the Senate, and bring governance closer to citizens. Critics warn of fiscal burden or chaos; in reality, decentralization reduces bureaucratic waste, enhances accountability, and improves social equity. Saraikistan is solution, not liability.
The Moral Imperative
Recognition of Saraiki as a national language, and creation of Saraikistan as a province, restores dignity and belonging to millions long treated as invisible. Citizenship is hollow if a people’s history, language, and resources are denied.
Courage, Reform, Future
Saraikistan is courage. Saraikistan is reform. Saraikistan is Pakistan’s secure, just, and durable future. Delay risks fracture, inequity, and historical repetition. The federal parliament must enact a constitutional amendment creating Saraikistan and restoring Bahawalpur as a province. Anything less is evasion; anything more is delay.
Saraikistan for Pakistan! Saraikistan for justice! Saraikistan for the strong federation of Pakistan!
