The army operation, which began in November 2007, continued until February 2008. It is a measure of the success of the first phase of the operation that elections were peacefully held throughout the Valley and voters overwhelmingly voted for the Awami National Party and the Pakistan People’s Party, the two major partners in the NWFP coalition government.

After the elections, however, the Taliban elements began sporadic operations again. The second phase of the operation resulted in more collateral damage. At that point the ANP government began lobbying for a political solution. The policy resulted in a dual-track strategy: make legal arrangements for the implementation of Shariat law in the area through Sufi Muhammad’s TNSM and use that to force the Taliban into a peace deal.

The thrust was to blunt the Taliban who were using the absence of Shariat in the area to accomplish their agenda. Sufi Muhammad, the father-in-law of Fazlullah, with his TNSM was thought to be the best bet to achieve this.

Sufi was released from jail in Dera Ismail Khan and allowed to reclaim his bailiwick. Simultaneously, the government offered a peace deal to the Taliban who had already come under pressure because of his release and his statements that given the government’s sincerity in implementing Shariat, there was no reason to continue fighting.

The fighting stopped. But the policy has come under tremendous pressure and there is much disinformation floating around. The two issues, implementation of the Shariat law and the peace deal, have also got mixed up because of the timing and because the Nizam-e Adl Regulation 2009 has been used as the device which prevents the Taliban from making mischief.

... contd.