IT has all the hallmarks of a compromise. The operation against criminal elements hiding in a stretch of forested area in south Punjab has been billed as a historic first. Civilian law-enforcement agencies in coordination with paramilitary personnel have set out to eliminate the threat posed by criminal gangs in Rajanpur and adjoining districts. By official accounts, the fight will be fierce given that the criminal gangs have retreated to an inaccessible area and are believed to be well armed. Once the gangs have been defeated, the denizens of the affected region will surely see their security improve and local law enforcement will have fewer hazards to face. Yet, some perspective is necessary. The names of the groups that have been bandied about have no national recognition. Neither is there a clear link to militancy and terrorism that is being fought under the umbrella of Operation Zarb-i-Azb. So, it does appear to be a compromise between the political government and the military leadership.

It is also a compromise that Pakistan does not need. Punjab has a terrorism and militancy problem that is not just a threat to Punjab, but the country itself. The extremism threat in Punjab is perhaps even greater — shocking details this week of a parallel judiciary operating in the provincial capital have given an indication of how far the problem has metastasised in the province. What the province needs — what Pakistan needs — is a counter-terrorism operation that is full-fledged, unflinching and across Punjab. And the operation must be civilian-led with maximum cooperation from the military. If, as the military appears to have recognised, the problem in Punjab is urgent and needs an immediate response, then the military leadership should also recognise its role in creating the political space necessary. But who leads the fight and what special powers the military and paramilitary personnel are given ought to be secondary to the goal of securing Pakistan.

Lost in the civil-military tug-of-war has been the effect on the morale of the civilian law-enforcement agencies. The military regards them as inferior, while the political government will not let them do their job — it is the worst of both worlds that civilian agencies face. The operation in Rajanpur is unlikely to fix that problem. Are the police and civilian intelligence agencies in urban Punjab and central and north Punjab being better prepared, and have their resources been boosted for a fight that is certain to erupt at some point? There is no indication of that at all. Each time the civilians and the military leadership disagree on an issue, there is a tendency to cast it as a parochial dispute between two sides. But when it is Pakistan’s security at stake, all sides need to reflect on what the national interest truly means.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2016