Colonel ® Amjad Hussain Sayed Passes away
Col ® Amjad Hussain Sayed, one of the last surviving icons of the Pakistan freedom struggle, passed away in Lahore on June 19, 2017. He may have been the last living legacy of the Pakistan Movement.
Col Syed was born to a distinguished Sayed family from Lahore, which founded Muslim Town, adjacent to Model Town, 90 years ago.
He was a student leader in Islamia College, Lahore, which was then the hub of Muslim nationhood. He was a frequent visitor to Allama Iqbal at Lahore and during that period also met the Quaid. In 1937, he was sent by Allama Iqbal to the historic 1937 Session of the Muslim League at Lucknow, where the Muslim League was reorganized and Quaid-i-Azam for the first time wore his achkan and Jinnah cap. This 1937 session served as a launching pad for the Pakistan Movement.
Col. Amjad also participated in the March 1940 Muslim League Session at Lahore, where the Pakistan Resolution was passed. He was accompanied then by his nephew Khalid Hussain, who made the sole video recording of that watershed event.
Commissioned as a lieutenant in the Army in January 1942, he served in the Middle East during World War II. In 1956, he was selected for a military course at Maidstone, England, where he attained distinction.
In 1957, he was dispatched by Gen. Ayub Khan, the Commander in Chief of the Pakistan Army, as Defense Attaché to Djarkarta, Indonesia, where India under Prime Minister Pandit Nehru had considerable influence after the Bandung Conference of 1955. Through his sterling efforts, which energized and inspired Pakistan-Indonesian ties, Indonesia’s President Sukarno decorated Col. Amjad in 1963 with the Bintang Dharma (Star of Merit) – Indonesia’s highest medal bestowed for most distinguished service in the military. The award citation noted that he “extensively travelled in Indonesia for the purpose of fostering good relations” between Pakistan and Indonesia, “creating an everlasting impression”, “with the result that Indonesians consider him to be one of them”, and concluded that Col. Amjad “as a diplomat has blazed a trail of light which will long serve as a beacon to those who are given to the task of promoting the cause of peace and friendship.”
The results of Col. Amjad’s strivings were readily transparent during the Indo-Pak War of September 1965, when Sukarno stood like the Rock of Gibraltar behind Pakistan. Col. Amjad’s assignments included being Commandant of ASC Officers’ School at Jhelum and Commanding Officer at Dacca from 1964-67. He was recalled to the Army during the 1971 War.
In August 1997, he was awarded a Gold Medal for his services and sacrifices during the Pakistan Movement by the Prime Minister of Pakistan, during the Golden Jubilee Year marking Pakistan’s creation.
Col. Amjad was recognized as an icon of the Pakistan freedom struggle and was a frequent speaker on public forums, radio, and TV, at milestone events marking special phases of the Pakistan Movement.
He was known for his uprightness, courage of convictions, and austere living. He remained a source of inspiration for many youth for his simple living, strong faith in Pakistan, and dauntless commitment for the ideals of the Quaid and Allama Iqbal.
He was widely honored and a figure of inspiration notable for his integrity, daring, and moral uprightness. He had warned the youth to shun materialism, which he saw as the bane of society and at the core of many of the socio-cultural problems.
Col. Amjad Hussain Sayed was laid to rest in his family Shah Jamal graveyard in Lahore on Wednesday, June 21.
May his soul rest in peace (Ameen)
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