Abdul Sattar and Bilquis Edhi: The Great Humanitarian Couple— Nobler than the Nobel — And Now Bilquis Departs
By Dr A. Khan
Chicago, IL
Bilquis Bano Edhi passed away in Karachi due to multiple ailments on April 15, 2022. Abdul Sattar and Bilquis Edhi aka “mother of Pakistan” were the dynamic “humanitarian” duo and a very dedicated couple who developed the largest social welfare and healthcare system in Pakistan.
Bilquis was born in Gujarat’s Bantwa area in British India on August 14, 1947. Her family moved to Karachi after the creation of Pakistan. During the 1950s she joined Abdul Sattar Edhi’s small dispensary as a nurse and later in 1966 she married him. Over the past half century, she helped Abdul Sattar Edhi transform his small dispensary in Karachi into Pakistan's largest social welfare organization that caters to the needs of millions from Karachi to Peshawar. The Edhi organization has the world's largest fleet of ambulances and offers social welfare services in the form of senior citizen homes, clinics, maternity homes, animal shelters, schools, orphanages, mortuaries, centers for physically and mentally challenged people, and soup kitchens.
The Edhis lived a very frugal life — the couple and their children used to live in a small flat in their dispensary and later moved to the premises of the Edhi Center. Regarding her simple life she had observed: "Everyone said I was crazy to marry him…Friends joked that while they'd go on picnics, he'd take me to graveyards."
In an interview with BBC’s Mathew Bannister, Bilquis Edhi revealed how she met Edhi sahib while working at his dispensary as a nurse. Bilquis recalled that once she was accompanying Edhi sahib to drop off a child’s dead body from Karachi to interior Sindh when the Dak’ku (robbers) stopped their ambulance and tried to rob them, but the mother of the dead child interrupted the robbers and said this is Edhi sahib, the robbers got off their horses and kissed Edhi sahib’s hand and donated Rs 100 to Edhi sahib and said we know when we will be dead you will take care of us and bury us.
Abdul Sattar and Bilquis Edhi saved the lives of more than 16,000 unwanted babies whom people abandoned due to illegitimate or unfortunate circumstances. Bilquis Edhi was instrumental in placing jhulas (cradles) outside Edhi centers all over the country for people to place the unwanted babies in them. She took care of them and placed some of them for adoption. People used to call Edhi to pick up babies who were abandoned in garbage dumpsters and other places; in Karachi, the babies were transported to Edhi headquarters; babies, left at Edhi centers at remote locations of the country, were flown to Karachi. Bilquis Edhi recalls that Abdul Sattar Edhi sahib used to read stories in newspapers about people abandoning babies and felt very sad about it — so he came up with the idea that why don’t we place cradles outside Edhi centers and let people drop off unwanted babies in them without any questions asked. So, in 1970 the first cradle was placed outside the Edhi Center in Karachi with a handwritten sign: “Don't kill… Leave the baby alive in the cradle. Do not kill the baby. ... Allow the baby to live."
In an interview with NPR , Bilquis had observed: "Most of the babies who are left in the cradle at our doorstep are girls ..Sometimes the babies are tossed in garbage heaps, gagged and wrapped in plastic bags." She recalled picking up a baby girl, from a garbage dump, whose cheek had been eaten by a dog or a cat; she took the girl to Aga Khan Hospital for reconstructing the cheek but the surgical outcome was not favorable; later Bilquis Edhi contacted one of her acquittance, Sadia, who had earlier adopted a child from Edhi; Sadia adopted the girl and took her to Canada; after multiple surgeries the girl’s cheek was reconstructed and today she is a happy growing kid.
During the past five decades, the Edhis have placed thousands of babies and children with adoptive families in Pakistan and abroad. Many of these children have grown up and are living very successful lives as doctors, engineers, attorneys and other professionals in Pakistan and around the globe. For her humanitarian services Bilquis was awarded the 1986 Ramon Magsaysay Award for her public service she was the recipient of the 2015 Mother Teresa Memorial International Award for Social Justice .
Bilquis Edhi had said that they never accepted any funds from government or rich people; the majority of funds came by way of donations from the middle class. Edhi sahib used to say people like and trust me for what I do and so they give me money. Bilquis Edhi used to say to her husband that our money goes a long way; how does it go a long way? Edhi sahib used to say the day you and my intention go bad the money will stop going a long way. She used to ask her husband what made him so successful. Edhi sahib used to reply: “Listen, learn, forgive and let go.” She once asked Edhi sahib why he keeps his Dua (supplications) short after offering daily Salah (prayers) to which Edhi sahib replied: I just ask Allah SWT to bless my good intentions, that is enough for me.
It is said that behind every successful man, there is a strong woman — indeed, Bilquis Edhi was that woman behind the success of Edhi sahib! Bilquis Bano Edhi is survived by her children — Faisal Edhi , Kubra Edhi , Kutub Edhi , Almas Edhi — who will continue to carry on with their parent’s mission of serving humanity with distinction and humility!
Bilquis and Edhi sahib excelled in serving humanity! People of Pakistan regard Abdul Sattar Edhi as a saint and Bilquis a great humanitarian — due to political correctness they were never awarded the Nobel Peace Prize — but their great humanitarian work has made them nobler than the Nobel!
May Allah SWT accept the great humanitarian services of Bilquis and Edhi sahib and grant them the highest stations in Janet ul Firdous! Ameen.
