Deep State Continuum in Pakistan & Implications for India

A relatively new, fascinating yet under researched term, Deep State used in the field of International Relations, is decoded in the book with theory and facts, as a part of the larger discourse on geo-politics and geo-strategic studies, thus filling the gaps on the subject. What does the term deep state mean? When did it become part of the international relations vocabulary? What are the driving forces behind it? Such intriguing queries are answered by tracing the idea from Indian political thinker, Kautilya in the 4th century BC, to its modern day avatar in Turkey in the 1990s.

The book delineates the seminal concepts in context of deep state in Pakistan and elucidates on its ramifications for India, by disseminating how behind the democratised elected parliament, “majlis-e Shura” is the iron fist which is yielding real power. As a result, Uniformed democracy (coined by author) has persevered. Pak’s deep state complexities are decrypted by tracing its growth through pre-independence and post-independence era’s and categorising its evolution into various phases. In each chapter of the book, important adjuncts of the invincible army are examined in depth, including a first-of-its-kind study on the ISPR’s information warfare as the most important weapon of the Pak Army.

South Asia’s progress has been impacted by the conflictual relations between the two nuclear neighbours. Can this be attributed to the Deep State?