Anti-Pakistan sentiment

Anti-Pakistan sentiment (also called Pakophobia or Pakistanophobia) refers to hatred, fear, hostility or irrational fixation toward Pakistan, Pakistanis and Pakistani culture and may manifest as racism, discrimination, or violence against Pakistanis on the basis of their national origin. In a political context, it usually refers to a pronounced dislike of Pakistan's actions or existence as a sovereign state. Additionally, hostility toward Pakistanis may also be motivated by other types of xenophobic sentiment, such as Islamophobia or broad racism targeting South Asian people as a whole.

Negative attitudes towards Pakistan have existed since the beginning of the Pakistan Movement, which advocated the establishment of a separate state for Muslims in parts of erstwhile British India. The idea of Pakistan, as put forth by the All-India Muslim League, was denounced by much of the Indian independence movement, in which many activists opposed partitioning India. The creation of Pakistan occurred through the partition of India in August 1947, resulting in widespread communal violence between Muslims and non-Muslims that displaced 20 million people along religious lines, which laid the foundation for the ongoing India–Pakistan conflict. Beyond India, regional anti-Pakistan sentiment has existed in Afghanistan and Bangladesh, where it is primarily rooted in the Durand Line dispute since 1949 and the Bangladesh genocide in 1971, respectively.