Socialism in Pakistan

The influences of socialism and socialist movements in Pakistan have taken many different forms as a counterpart to political conservatism, from the hard-liners of the Communist Party through to the reformist electoral project enshrined in the birth of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)

While capitalism has always held its sway, the prevalence of the socialist ideology has nevertheless continued to be found in a number of instances in Pakistan's political past and prominent personalities. Much of the remaining socialism in Pakistan today accedes to the idea of Islamic left (socialism and communism), where the state would be run in a socialist set-up consistent with Islamic political principles, while other proponents demand pure socialism.

The socialist movements in British Indian Empire began with the Russian Revolution, and the subsequent Soviet people's immigration to North-Western areas into territory (now Pakistan) held by British Empire, in 1922-27. The British authorities were terrified after revealing the attempted series of revolts against the British Empire, known as Peshawar Conspiracy Cases.

Immediately after the establishment of Pakistan on 14 August 1947 which was achieved by a political party, Muslim League led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the struggle for left-wing orientation began as a failure of the military campaign with India. After Jinnah's death in 1948, the clash ideologies and political disagreements began when Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan consolidated his position more densely. The Pakistan Socialist Party (PSP) was the only socialist party of her time, and was active in both East Pakistan and West Pakistan. The Socialist Party was generally a secular party which had first opposed the idea of the partition of India. The Socialist Party found it difficult to compete with the conservatives and other right-wing groups. The PML was led by Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan, who wanted to adopt what was called Islamic socialism. Another leftist group was the Socialist Party. The Pakistan Socialist Party was politically isolated with little mass. This was despite its strong appeal in rural areas. It had around 1200 members and was a member of the Asian Socialist Conference. The Socialist Party's liberal programs were met with harsh opposition which the conservatives labeled as Kafirs. Dismayed with the results of the war, Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan survived a coup conspiracy hatched by the left-wing personalitie, including the armed forces personnel. In response to the activist left-wing sphere, Prime Minister Ali Khan succeeded in authoring and drafting the Objectives Resolution, in 1950. The house passed it on 12 March 1949, but met with harsh critic even from his Law Minister Jogendra Nath Mandal who argued against it.

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