The National Action Plan (NAP) formulated to counter terrorism and extremist elements in the country was to be implemented by the provincial government without delays. They were also supposed to put the required systems in place, and increase the capacity of their institutions to ensure the efficacy of this plan.

Like other provinces, Punjab has also been under immense pressure to implement the NAP. In fact, the province has been criticised by the federal government for being slow in implementing the plan. Accepting responsibility for the delays, Punjab’s provincial leadership has vowed to speed up things and overcome the impediments at the earliest.

The NAP document comprises 20 points, and suggests as many initiatives to curb terrorism and extremism. For example, it calls for implementation of death sentence to those convicted in cases of terrorism, ban on militant outfits in the country, strict action against newspapers and magazines promoting hatred, extremism, sectarianism and intolerance, choking of financing for terrorist and terrorist organisations, establishment of a counter-terrorism force, ban on glorification of terrorists and terrorist organisations through print and electronic media, zero tolerance for militancy in Punjab and so on.

Although the Punjab government boasts of setting up a highly professional and fully equipped counter terrorism force, its progress on countering extremism is yet to be measured. There is a need to evaluate how far the government has achieved the objective of purging the curriculum of hate material, stopping armed and militant organisation from operating freely, keeping track of funding received by madrassas, challenging the narrative that supports violence and killing in the name of religion and so on.

One of the 20 points of NAP is about having "zero tolerance for militancy in Punjab", yet it is strongly believed that beyond some administrative measures, there has been little debate or progress on defining the given context in Punjab. Besides, there have been hardly any public dialogues and debates among representatives of different cross sections of the society to develop a counter narrative on extremism and suggest solutions to the problems they are facing today.

In this context, a two-day conference titled ‘Counter Narrative to Violent Extremism in Punjab’ was organised by HomeNet Pakistan with the aim to initiate dialogue to support the Punjab government in the implementation of NAP in the province. Attended by representatives of academia, civil society, think-tanks, government departments, and media, the event was an opportunity for the participants to discuss these issues threadbare, point out the neglected areas and even suggest corrective measures.

While talking to TNS on this occasion, analyst Dr Hasan Askari said that the state should never align itself with militant groups regardless of whatever the cause. "This leads to irreparable damage that stays with us for ages."

He added the pre-1977 Pakistani society was a tolerant one and it took around two generations to reach the present state, where the culture of dialogue and peaceful co-existence has been taken over by violence and intolerance. "There should be no classification of good extremists and bad extremists and both must be treated alike."

On extremists’ tendency of find refuge in religion, Dr Shehzad Saleem, an Islamic scholar and researcher, said it was very unfortunate that such elements defended their violent actions by quoting references from the Quran and other religious teachings, totally out of context. He added, "This narrative has to be changed by encouraging people to discuss religion, understand it in its true spirit and apply logic wherever needed. The problem is that people are afraid of discussing such issues."

Saleem also said killing innocent people in the name of religion could not be justified at all but the extremists would immediately quote something to justify such acts. For example, he said, when asked as to why they killed innocent people while carrying out terrorist acts at public places/soft targets, the extremists would say these people fall in the category of collateral damage, and will go immediately to the heavens for their sacrifice in the way of Allah Almighty. "This type of mental orientation has to be changed through debates and convincing arguments."

Head of Punjab Higher Education Commission (HEC) Prof. Dr Nizamuddin said the role of education was integral in fighting and countering extremism. He shared that the Punjab government had formed a committee of five vice chancellors of universities of the province to give recommendations on how to combat militancy through education reforms. This committee, he said, "met regularly in the presence of provincial secretaries, prepared its recommendations and sent these to the government but so far there is no update on its implementation".

Amir Rana, Director, Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS) said Punjab is important "as our national narrative is Punjab’s narrative". He added Lahore is the capital of religious headquarters that not only include moderates and sufis but also the militant and political ones. "These elements have changed the mindset of the society, and made sectarianism the dominant narrative of Punjab. The need of the time is to change this mindset which though not an easy task is achievable."