The Tehreek-e-Labbaik is now a force to reckon with, not just in terms of its street power, but also in terms of its electoral strength. Even the Pakistani Army is wary of using force against it
Tehreek-e-Labbaik (TLP) — Pakistan’s largest religious political party, the third-largest political party in Punjab and fifth-largest in the country by virtue of votes — is like an active volcano. Every once in a while, usually once and sometimes twice a year, it erupts onto the streets of the country, causing mayhem. Then it settles down, either as a result of a surrender by the state, or a crackdown.
But like every active volcano, the calm that returns is only on the surface. It hides the lava that is bubbling below, a toxic mix of politics, ideology, religiosity, sociology, political economy, which the TLP appears to have harnessed and weaponised to great effect. The result is that in just four years — the TLP was registered as a political party in July 2017 — and after about half a dozen eruptions, the Sunni Barelvi political party has come to occupy a pivotal position on the political firmament of Pakistan.
But like every active volcano, the calm that returns is only on the surface. It hides the lava that is bubbling below, a toxic mix of politics, ideology, religiosity, sociology, political economy, which the TLP appears to have harnessed and weaponised to great effect. The result is that in just four years — the TLP was registered as a political party in July 2017 — and after about half a dozen eruptions, the Sunni Barelvi political party has come to occupy a pivotal position on the political firmament of Pakistan.