From asset to liability? Why Lashkar-e-Taiba’s internal revolt raises alarms for Asim Munir and Pakistan’s deep state

Lashkar-e-Taiba cadres rebel against Pakistan establishment

The Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) may be heading towards a significant internal split, a development that could further destabilise Pakistan, Indian intelligence agencies have learnt. For years, the group has been Pakistan’s preferred proxy and has not witnessed any internal rebellion.

According to NDTV report, the outfit has traditionally followed the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) line without deviation. However, an Intelligence Bureau official said tensions have begun to surface, with some senior leaders voicing discontent over decisions taken in recent months.

According to the official, Operation Sindoor proved to be the tipping point, as the group suffered heavy losses to its infrastructure. Efforts to regroup since then have been difficult, and many operatives have lost faith in the ISI and the Pakistan Army, believing they were not adequately protected.

While the ISI managed to temporarily resolve differences and restart the regrouping process, fresh resentment has emerged over decisions by the army and the ISI to deploy Lashkar-e-Taiba against the Taliban, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Balochistan Nationalist Army (BLA). Officials said these moves have been strongly opposed by a large section of the cadre.

Officials added that cadres feel the establishment is “catering too much to both the Chinese and Western needs”. China and the United States have shown interest in the rare earth resources in Balochistan, where both the TTP and BLA are engaged in intense fighting with the Pakistan Army in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Unable to effectively counter these groups, the army decided to bring in the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) and align it with Lashkar-e-Taiba to fight the TTP and BLA.

The Lashkar leadership has begun questioning the need to fight “their own people” to safeguard Chinese and Western interests. The outfit is also uneasy about any alignment with ISKP, which it views as an enemy of the Afghan Taliban.

Lashkar-e-Taiba has been openly supportive of the Taliban, and the Pakistan Army’s actions against the group in Afghanistan have further angered the outfit’s leadership, officials said.

Pakistan watchers noted that the discontent is now increasingly visible. Earlier, such resentment was kept under wraps, but it has now surfaced openly, with cadres feeling the establishment expects too much from them.

Leaders are reportedly struggling to justify to their cadres why they are fighting fellow Pakistanis. Many operatives believe all such groups should remain united and focus their fight solely against India and Western forces.

The unease became public after a video of Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Mohammad Ashfaq Rana went viral, in which he is seen criticising the establishment. In the video, Rana says they have been taken advantage of by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir.

Rana says the establishment has failed to protect them while simultaneously ruining the country. Referring to Pakistan’s debt crisis, he adds that even if half the borrowed money had been properly used instead of being syphoned off, the country would have prospered.

Officials said these developments point to a widening rift between sections of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and the establishment. They added that the fact that Hafiz Saeed is rarely seen in public is another indication that all is not well.

A continued open rebellion by Lashkar-e-Taiba would be extremely dangerous, officials warned. The outfit has highly committed cadres, and instances of internal rebellion in the past have been almost non-existent. If disgruntled members defect to groups such as the TTP, it could deal a major blow to the Pakistani establishment.

If violence in Pakistan continues to escalate and militant groups begin operating independently, it would pose a serious security risk to the region, another official said. He added that a split within Lashkar-e-Taiba could soon be followed by similar developments in Jaish-e-Mohammad as well.