Elite Power Structures in Karachi A Neocolonial Reading of Bina Shah’s The 786 Cybercafé

Abstract

This study examines the elite power groups in Karachi in Bina Shah’s The 786 Cybercafé (2004) by using the lens of neocolonialism discussed by Kwame Nkrumah and Michel Foucault’s insights into the dynamics of power to evaluate the power structures rooted in this novel. By contextualizing the issue that the neocolonial powers—ethnic and political groups, while mimicking the role of the colonizers, subjugate the minorities and powerless people, bringing ethnic polarization and unprecedented social dichotomies leading to violence, disorder, anarchy, and tension among the Karachiites also labelled as “Others,” this article argues how power works through power structures manufactured by neocolonial figures in this novel. The study is significant because it addresses the issue of ethnic and cultural contests that pose hurdles to the collective values of multiculturalism, globalization, and, above all, humanity. Consequently, this research concludes that
the internal contradictions and conflicts in the form of ethnic, linguistic, and cultural conflicts deteriorate the harmony of a country and infers that the application of the practice of neocolonialism will further increase the disintegration and conflicts
in Karachi and destabilize state building.