Pakistan, Sept. 12 -- There is a reason why the assault case involving Karachi University professor Dr Arif Khan Saqi has sent shockwaves across the country. Most Pakistanis know this story well. Yes, they may not know the people involved, or where the altercation took place, but they know the script: armed guards, an argument with somebody who refuses to back down, and a sudden discovery that one side has considerably more muscle than the other.

According to Dr Saqi, the matter began when a vehicle hit the rented car being driven by his nephew. The exchange then turned violent, with firing, pistol blows, and the professor and his nephew being taken inside a nearby hotel, where they were kept against their will.

Pakistan has spent years...