AfPak File: Reading The Tea Leaves On Pakistan’s New Agreement With Religious Hardliners

Islamabad recently reached an agreement with the hardline religious political party Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), which has been staging protests and sit-ins in multiple cities in recent weeks.

In recent years, TLP, which advocates for the execution of those accused of blasphemy, has killed police officers, called for the assassination of judges, and called on Pakistan’s military to mutiny.

Though the accord hasn’t been made public, it reportedly calls on TLP to renounce violence and in return removes the ban on the group and permits it to participate in elections.

What does this agreement mean for Pakistani politics and society? Does it strengthen the group? And where does it leave the Pakistani state?

The latest episode of The AfPak File addresses these questions and more. Joining the debate are journalist Amber Rahim Shamsi; Muhammad Amir Rana, director of the Pak Institute for Peace Studies; and Michael Kugelman, senior associate for South Asia at the Wilson Center.

Muhammad Tahir, Washington DC media manager for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, moderates the discussion.

This podcast originally appeared on RFE/RL.