December
30, 2005
2006
& Maulana Zafar Ali Khan
The
year 2006 is the centenary year of the
founding of the Muslim League in Dacca.
It is also the 50th death anniversary
of that dauntless fighter for Muslim
political causes, Maulana Zafar Ali
Khan (1873-1956), writer, freedom fighter,
poet and journalist. Maulana Zafar Ali
Khan was in the arena when it most mattered.
Today, he is seldom remembered –
a reflection of the current socio-political
milieu which consecrates the present
and relegates the past. There is a constant
refrain that the youth is short of inspirational
role models to emulate. This partly
explains the constant seeking of outside
heroes.
The genuine heroes are embedded within
our own history and heritage. They are
awaiting to be discovered, studied and
honored.
Maulana Zafar Ali Khan was the preeminent
Urdu journalist of pre-partition India
being the editor of the newspaper Zamindar
which prominently projected Muslim aspirations.
The Zamindar paper became the nursery
of Muslim media including in its roster
legendary writers like Abdul Majeed
Salik, Ghulam Rasul Mehr – who
both lived in Muslim Town, Lahore –
and Chiragh Hasan Hasrat. Both Salik
and Mehr (close friends of Allama Iqbal)
later became Editors and owners of the
Lahore-based Urdu daily ‘Inqilab’
located at Gowalmandi. In the annals
of Urdu journalism Maulana Zafar Ali
Khan came to be recognized as ‘Baba-e-Sahafat’
(father of journalism).
Maulana Zafar Ali Khan was present during
all key milestones of Muslim League
history. He was there during its founding
in 1906 at Dacca, during its 1937 reorganization
at the Lucknow Session – where
my father, who is the last living delegate,
was present – and at Lahore in
1940 when the Pakistan Resolution was
passed. When the Indian Congress won
victories during the 1937 elections,
Maulana Zafar Ali Khan wrote a letter
to the Quaid alerting him to the compelling
need to regroup and to avoid fissures
within the Muslim League in the aftermath
of Congress’s electoral gains.
Earlier, at the Badshahi Mosque in 1936,
the Quaid had said that with brave men
like the Maulana none could foil the
Mussulmans of India.
The Zamindar office was located at McLeod
Road, Lahore. The office was downstairs
while the Maulana’s dwellings
were upstairs. From there, the Maulana
used to jog to the Ravi bridge and back,
putting a top priority on physical fitness.
He had the gift of insight to pierce
through the secular veil of the Congress
and view its real face of communal chauvinism.
The Maulana believed that the sole superpower
was the Almighty Allah and his Imaan
enabled him to resist the worldly superpower
of the day – the British Raj.
For his endeavors he had to endure 14
years in jail, expending stupendous
energy in contesting the writ of the
Raj and in foiling machinations of its
Brahmin cohorts. He was imbued with
the love of the Holy Prophet (pbuh)
and would not tolerate any caviling
about his faith. Because of his explosive
temper, he was known as “the volcano”.
When it came to standing up for Muslim
causes, till the very end, he never
let the fire within to be extinguished.
I was privileged to be the keynote speaker
during the annual event commemorating
his 49th death anniversary, which was
held adjacent to his final resting place
at Karamabad next to the town of Wazirabad,
midway between Gujranwala and Gujrat.
There, I proposed the following:
i. Establishing the Maulana Zafar Ali
Khan Institute of Journalism at Lahore
to produce thinkers and writers who
can compete in the battle of ideas as
well as projecting Muslim causes;
ii. Purchasing the old Zamindar office
building where the Maulana used to work
and live and making it into a national
heritage building. This will further
instill a sense of self-worth, particularly
in the youth, about their own history;
iii. Supporting the Maulana Zafar Ali
Khan Memorial Complex adjacent to his
place of burial. This proposal was formally
presented to the scribe and is worthy
of support from the Punjab Government.
This could be a living museum dedicated
to the heritage of Maulana Zafar Ali
Khan and serving as a continuing inspiration
for the young. (This area could be further
revitalized once it gets access to Sui
gas); and
iv. Celebrating Maulana Zafar Ali Khan’s
life and legacy by the Muslim League
during its Centennial year of 2006.
A nation which honors its heroes is
worthy of standing tall in the comity
of nations.
