The Nexus between Madrasa and Politics: Analysing Political role of Madrasas in Pakistan and Afghanistan

Abstract

This article analyses political role of madrasas in Pakistan and Afghanistan from a historical perspective to see how they have played key roles in shaping political and strategic agendas of state and non-state actors in South Asia. Consequently, this undertaking adopts the historicist approach in which it will emphasise the importance of madrasa history in order to understand historical changes and demonstrate their potential role as tool to exert political and strategic interests of state and non-state actors in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It argues that although madrasas are generally considered as centres for Islamic religious education, their roles vary amongst countries with different forms of social, cultural, and political structures. This paper concludes that in countries such as Afghanistan and Pakistan - under the tense political and strategic pressure of regional and international powers - where Islam depicts social, cultural, and political identities of Muslims, some madrasas play a key role as potential tool to exert political and strategic interests of state and non-state actors.