Prominent Educator and Poet Naqi Akhter Passes away in Chicago
By Dr Ahmed S. Khan
Professor Syed Naqi Akhter passed away on Sunday, March 1, in suburban Chicago, following a cardiac arrest. Professor Akhter worked at DeVry University, Chicago (1968-2003), and held many academic positions including senior professor and chair, in DeVry’s College of Engineering and Information Sciences. He was a popular figure in Chicago’s South Asian literary and non-literary circles.
Syed Naqi Akhter Naqvi was born November 1, 1939, in Amroha (UP, British India), a city famous for its mangoes, poets, intellectuals, and artists. His father worked for the Indian Railway. His family is notable for having produced many intellectuals and artists, including Kamal Amrohvi (film writer/director/producer), RaisAmrohvi (poet), Joan Elia (poet), Syed Muhammed Taqi (former Editor Jang), and Sadequain (artist).
After partition, Prof. Akhter’s family moved to Pakistan. In 1953, he passed his matriculation board exam (grade 10) securing the second position in the city of Karachi. He completed his BSc (Hons) Physics, in 1958, and after gaining a Master’s degree in Physics in 1959 from the University of Karachi, he joined Islamia College, Karachi, as a professor. Later, he was invited by the Habib Foundation to establish Habib College, where he taught for a number of years.
While attending the University of Karachi, Prof. Akhter worked for several Urdu literary magazines published by RaisAmrohavi and Juan Elia. He also produced a number of radio programs about student affairs for Radio Pakistan and the Voice of America.
In 1967, in pursuit of advanced higher education, he enrolled at Texas Technological University, Lubbock. In 1968, he joined DeVry University, Chicago, where he served for 35 years. He also served as an adviser to a number of campus student clubs that included Laser Institute of America (LIA), International Students Association, and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). After retirement in 2003, he continued to teach at DeVry’s Tinley Park campus as an adjunct professor.
In the 1990s, Prof. Akhter organized a conference in collaboration with the University of Chicago and the Smithsonian Institution, on Amir Khusro (1253 – 1325), a prominent Sufi musician, poet, and scholar of the Delhi sultanate. The conference was presided over by the eminent Islamic scholar Dr Annemarie Schimmel, a professor at Harvard University.
For over 50 years, Prof. Akhter participated regularly in local and national Mushairas (Urdu poetry recital events). Many of his ghazals have been sung by prominent singers, such as Ustad Ghulam Ali and Vikas Falnikar. Before his demise, he completed a book of poetry called “Dar-e-pinhaaN (the hidden pain).” Indeed, he picked a poignant title for his book, as great Urdu poet Ghalib had observed:
Sub kahaaN Kuch Lala-o-Gul mei Nnumaayaa N ho gayeeN,
Khaak meiN keya soorateiN hongee kay pinhaaN ho gayeeN
Not all, but some have manifested themselves as tulips and roses.
What faces/states would be there in dust, they have become hidden.
Naqi Akhter was a soft-spoken person with a humble disposition. He remained a lifelong champion of social equity. He is survived by his wife, Razia Akhter, and two sons, Shahab Akhter, a heart surgeon, and Raza Akhter, an IT consultant.
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