ONLINE -FOOT SOLDIERS- OYSTER : MASTER GLOBAL ESSAY

AMIDST the worsening ties between India and Pakistan - a noticeable feature was the difference in how citizens of both countries responded to the threat and fallout of violence.

Pakistanis mostly, though not exclusively, turned to humour and nihilism around the possibility of Indian incursions. Indian social media, on the other hand, was dominated by  jingoistic calls for escalating violence and revenge.

Events of the recent weeks confirmed what many have observed for at least the past two decades : on national security issues, mainstream Indian political parties, news media, the cultural sphere and internet using citizens tend to follow the state's line '' Tout Court ''.

The outcome of this homogeneity is an information system with little scepticism, no reluctance towards the idea of violence, and a deluge of misinformation.

Even before the ceasefire was announced - Indian news and social media accounts had profoundly declared the destruction of Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, a fact that apparently eluded the residents of these cities.

None of this stands to absolve Pakistani news actors and social media users. There is a long history of anti-India jingoism on this side as well.

In the current stand-off, celebrities who posted conciliatory messages after the first wave of cross-border attacks, were heavily criticised and labelled as sell-outs by social media users.

All the while drowning out and bullying dissident and progressive voices, and making the possibility of peaceful coexistence in the region ever more remote.

The World Students Society thanks Professor Umair Javed, who teaches sociology at LUMS.