Re: Did Pakistani Masses reject Religious parties ?
I think with the suicide bombings, the general tone of "religious fervor" in Pakistan has toned down a bit, and I'm hearing more moderates get vocal over religious extremism.
Religious extremists really shot themselves in the foot when they went into SWAT daringly tearing down Pakistani flags. News of that was all over Pakistan, and people began to realize the real dangers of these fanatics. Even NWFP tribals and some FATA tribals are sick of them and ready to switch sides.
However, I don't know whether you can really say this was exhibited in an election, where most of the country didn't come out to vote because of fear or because they were blocked - a number of villages announced on their masjid speakers the night before elections that women were not to come out of their homes to vote on the 18th - dar ke maaray sab behti hui theen ghar mein.