What have we become?

That political discourse in the country has been plunging newer depths every day is now fact. We have over the past few years in particular seen a government whose main mode of operation was attacking anyone it saw as a dissenting voice -- political opponents, journalists, judges, activists. The impact of this sustained lowering of civility -- in fact, an encouraged and nurtured culture of abuse -- has been obvious. First came the social media troll armies: fed by hefty political social media teams, and unleashed on detractors without much thought into the line that separates fact from fiction. Then came the Kaptaan himself: first on a container and then in the PM House and then back on the virtual container -- complete with dog whistles regarding harassment of dissident PTI members. And then came Thursday and the shameful exhibition of unacceptable language and behaviour by alleged PTI supporters towards the coalition government's Marriyum Aurangzeb and Shahzain Bugti.

The manner in which members of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's delegation to Saudi Arabia were attacked by other pilgrims present at Masjid-e-Nabvi has been shocking even for the most hardened cynic of the political process in Pakistan. Men with cellphones. At Masjid-e-Nabvi. Surrounding the JWP's Shahzain Bugti and the PML-N's Marriyum Aurangzeb. Heckling. Pulling hair. Shouting misogynist abuse towards Ms Aurangzeb. The scenes were horrifying even for a nation that by now has become used to fisticuffs at legislative assemblies, misogyny at political rallies, and threats and abuse online. To think that a space that signifies peace and prayer, a space that is supposed to make you contemplate your place in the world, a space revered for its historical and religious significance could be exploited for such petty and vulgar politics. To think that there could be an element of planning in what transpired -- as per statements by Sheikh Rasheed and tweets by PTI supporters and the presence of Imran Khan's friend on the scene. And to think that videos of the vile act were then gleefully shared by former ministers of the PTI. None of this bodes well for a democracy that is already barely keeping its head above the waters of toxicity. The reaction by Marriyum Aurangzeb for the abuse hurled at her has been graceful and measured -- and one would hope things will not escalate further. That hope may just be futile though since the PTI has not as yet learnt anything from its time in government or as opposition. This has been evident in the way the PTI's official Twitter account tweeted -- now deleted -- the video of the attack on Bugti and Marriyum Aurangzeb, the way the PTI's former cabinet ministers have risen to the defence of Thursday's happenings, and the fact that former PM Imran Khan has still not condemned the incident.

This poisonous politics will not end anywhere good, with tit-for-tat violence spilling into all manner of public spaces; former NA deputy speaker Qasim Suri was attacked at Islamabad's Kohsar market, presumably in response to what happened in Madina. When the country's most populist leader's every speech is laced with references to 'traitors', foreign conspiracies, and exhortations that the people must do their civic duty and spread the message forward with near-religious zeal, you get a blinkered vision of justice that can only see one side as the truth and everything else as a conspiracy. In all this, there can be no whataboutery or both side-isms. There can be no justification regarding people being exploited enough by populist propaganda to not just behave in an ugly fashion in one of the holiest spaces for Muslims on one of the holiest nights of Ramazan but also to do so without thinking of the consequences. With reports saying that Saudi officials have already started making arrests of those that had participated in the mob in Madina, the consequences may just be far more serious than the hecklers had bargained for. Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has said that Pakistan will request Saudi Arabia to take action against those involved -- including possible deportations. This is all terribly tragic: a nation being pulled by the inevitable charms of a cultish populism that has little to no regard for the lives of those that follow it blindly; a government that has no slogan or narrative to counter with; and a people that are willing to allow narcissist politics to encroach upon sacred space. Dark times indeed.