Politics of Power-sharing in Post-1971 Pakistan

Abstract

Power sharing models have been recommended by political scientists for multiethnic states to guarantee political stability. Consociationalism and centripetalism are the two most numerous models of power sharing. The former suggests grand coalition and the latter multiethnic coalition cabinets to share power in the diverse societies. Keeping in view these models, this paper attempts to examine the performance and durability of various coalition cabinets in post-1971 Pakistan. The evidence shows that the coalition cabinets in Pakistan remained short-lived. While Pakistan is not a case of deeply divided society, majoritarian system of government under two party system is more relevant to the Pakistani case rather than power sharing models