Sir: The Pakistani right and left wing ideologists keep discussing Quaid-e-Azam’s speech of August 11, 1947 that he made at the inaugural session of the Constituent Assembly, saying clearly that the state would have nothing to do with the religious affiliations of its subjects. Apparently in the last six decades we have consistently moved backwards. Rise of religious and sectarian violence from the 1980s onwards, with successive governments’ and agencies’ tactical support to fulfil some unknown goals has now become such a monster that it has completely engulfed Pakistan in its wake. As of today, these sectarian outfits have become so powerful that they are able to challenge the writ of the government. Unfortunately this sectarianism has taken a new dimension by becoming official as well. An important federal ministry has asked not only the religious but sectarian background of the candidates applying for jobs. Masood Khan Saudi Arabia