For nearly three years, I worked as a producer with a local media outlet in Lakki Marwat. Charged with unearthing local stories, it afforded me the opportunity to work closely with the locals and observe their culture, traditions, and especially the environment of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's southern district. Lakki Marwat is often considered an underdeveloped region since it lacks basic services such as healthcare, education, and access to clean water. But what evoked memories of what I witnessed was a question posed by a girl to a televangelist recently that forced me to ponder on the issues that truly plague the district but which have been neatly covered up on the surface.
I found the district quite rich with its natural resources and diversity, thanks to the fact that 70% of the land is rain-fed while the remaining 30% is irrigated. This is also why it is among the districts most affected by climate change in Pakistan.
The district's environment ranges from desert to fertile lands. The Tochi and Kurram rivers meet in the district, which is home to Pakistan's most diverse wetland, Thanedar Wala, which is part of the UN Ramsar sites. The love and connection that residents of the district have with these rivers are reflected in the local poetry.
Lakki Marwat is culturally similar to other Pashtun districts in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. I never saw women venture out in public without a veil or the Burqa during my time there. Women here spend most of their time at home. In some areas, women would collect and craft household items from local plants and give them to their men to sell in markets to support their families.
Education, especially for women, was valued in most areas, with girls enrolled in schools and colleges. Despite that, their enrollment ratios remained low. Religious gatherings such as the Tablighi (preaching) congregations propagating the teachings of Islam were common, and there were more Madrassas than schools. A university has been established here but is not yet as functional as in other districts.
Residents of the district are famous for their hospitality. Despite poverty, they welcome outsiders warmly and offer tea, "Nmarai", lunch, and dinner. The youth gather by the riverbanks for fun and engaging conversations in the evenings, often playing volleyball. Lakki Marwat also had some famous poets like the late Afgar Bukhari, a Shia leader who was gunned down in 2019. His Pashto language song “La mu che zargi ta ranzdi na wai.. La mu che tar manza fasli na wai (If you were not close to my heart… And if there were no distances between us) gained widespread popularity. Other poets who emerged from this region include Umar Daraz Marwat, Abdur Rahim Majzoob, Bahlol Marwat, and others who have contributed to the large body of Pashto literature and music.
The recent wave of terrorism in Lakki Marwat has left people feeling insecure, and there are frequent appeals to state institutions to restore peace. It's important to note that the situation is so precarious that since 2022-23, police operations typically cease after sunset in Lakki Marwat and its neighbouring districts.
Many religious preachers and clerics in Pakistan claim that societal degradation is often linked to women not observing purdah (as if all other factors are non-existent). This belief might have been why the girl asked how, despite the strict observance of purdah and the prevalence of religious education from institutions such as madrassas and educative mass gatherings, sins such as sexual harassment were rising in her society.
Out of such a district has come a question, posed by a young girl to a televangelist, which threatened to shake up the
Now, let's discuss the viral question posed by a girl from Lakki Marwat, Palwasha, to the famous Indian televangelist Dr Zakir Naik. The Islamic preacher is currently on a month-long state visit to Pakistan, where he is interacting with people and answering questions about comparative religion and Islam, apart from delivering lectures in major cities of Pakistan, such as Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore. On October 6, during a question-and-answer session in Karachi, Palwasha asked Dr Naik that, despite the strong Islamic environment in Lakki Mawrat, why were social evils like drug addiction, adultery, paedophilia, and usury taking root in our society. Her question was simple yet significant, seeking answers to the underlying causes of society's collapse despite the apparent strict adherence to Islamic values.
Palwasha's questions raised concerns about injustices such as sexual harassment and child abuse occurring in her area despite the strong emphasis on Islamic traditions, such as purdah (veiling) for the women in her region.
The question, however, is, why did Palwasha ask this specific question?
Many Pakistanis, myself included, grew up hearing the maxim that sins in society tend to rise when modesty and religious practices, purdah, and prayers are neglected in society. Many religious preachers and clerics in Pakistan claim that societal degradation is often linked to women not observing purdah (as if all other factors are non-existent). This belief might have been why the girl asked how, despite the strict observance of purdah and the prevalence of religious education from institutions such as madrassas and educative mass gatherings, sins such as sexual harassment were rising in her society.
Dr Zakir Naik, renowned for his apparent knowledge of faith, however, chose not to address the crux of the question and offer the girl an explanation of the key causes of increasing paedophilia and other evils in her society, which Islam was supposed to rectify.
Some people defended Dr Naik's response on social media, but many have criticised him for not providing a meaningful answer to the girl's genuine question. Others pointed to Dr Naik's obvious misogyny - which in some cases is not advocated by the very Islam he seems to preach. This criticism reflects a common sentiment regarding preachers in Pakistan, who sometimes avoid addressing difficult questions directly, especially on sensitive issues such as societal corruption or moral decline lest it expose them. Social media users say that when Dr Zakir Naik shut down Palwasha's attempt to further explain her question, it closed the door to an opportunity for meaningful dialogue on a key issue by someone believed to be widely influential.
The exchange between Palwasha and Dr Zakir Naik is a stark reminder that limited religious teachings alone cannot address societal issues alone, especially when those in positions of influence choose to dismiss uncomfortable truths. The persistence of social ills like paedophilia, drug addiction, and adultery in communities that adhere to Islamic values reveals a deeper disconnect between external religious observance and the inner moral fabric of society. Rather than silencing voices that question these discrepancies, there needs to be an open and honest dialogue that addresses the root causes of societal decay. Only by confronting these issues head-on, rather than deflecting or denying them, can meaningful change be enacted in communities like Lakki Marwat and beyond. Palwasha’s brave question, though brushed aside, speaks to a broader need for introspection and accountability within religious and social leadership.