The recurring spectacle of a containerised federal capital has become a debilitating ritual in Pakistan’s political calendar. Every time a wave of political protests looms, Islamabad and Rawalpindi are thrown into immediate administrative lockdown. Major highways are blocked, public transport is suspended, educational institutions close, and ordinary citizens find their daily lives paralysed. This preemptive high-handedness is ostensibly deployed to maintain order, but its primary consequence is the systemic suppression of fundamental civil liberties. Yet, the onus for this perpetual chaos rests squarely on both the government and the opposition. The opposition frequently initiates aggressive street agitation focused on singular political grievances rather than constructive policy goals. Simultaneously, the state reacts with disproportionate administrative overreach. Both sides treat the well-being of the common citizen as expendable collateral in an unending game of politics.

Both sides treat the well-being of the common citizen as expendable collateral in an unending game of politics.

Both sides treat the........

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