PAKISTAN

Indian Navy Mutiny 1946

2006-04-10T19:45:00.000-07:00

The Naval Mutiny started on February 18, 1946 in Bombay.
Like most revolts the Naval Mutiny too had a rather innocuous beginning. About a thousand ratings of HMIS TALWAR, the signal Training ship of the Royal Indian Navy in Bombay went on a hartal and a hunger strike. The incident which precipitated this unusual action was the alleged insult to an Indian rating by a British officer when the rating drew the officer's attention to some of the problems they were facing.
This hartal was ignored by the Britishers and before they knew it they had a full fledged mutiny on their hands. Moreover unlike earlier this was a mutiny that received unprecedented public support.
That the British chose to ignore this hartal by a 1000 naval ratings was a bit surprising because just twelve days earlier 600 members, including officers of the Royal Indian Air Force (RIAF) camp situated close by on Marine Drive went on a hunger strike as a protest against an insult by the Camp Commander. This hunger strike was supported by the RIAF men at Delhi, Lahore and Karachi forcing the British to take remedial measures.
The strike by the Naval ratings soon took serious proportions. Hundreds of strikers from the sloops, minesweepers and shore establishments in Bombay demonstrated for 2 hours along Hornby Road near VT (now the very busy D.N. Road near CST). British personnel of the Defence forces were singled out for attacks by the strikers who were armed only with hammers, crowbars and hockey sticks. The Union Jack was lowered from the ships and Congress and Muslim League flags were hoisted.
A reign of terror prevailed in Flora Fountain for an hour. Vehicles carrying mail were stopped and the mail burnt. British men and women going in cars and victorias were made to get down and shout "Jai Hind". Guns were trained on the Taj Mahal hotel, the Yacht Club and other buildings from morning till evening.
Absolute chaos prevailed for the next few days. 2000 men of HMIS AKBAR joined the strike. There was firing on the naval ratings in Castle Barracks. 1000 RIAF men from the Marine Drive and Andheri Camps also joined in sympathy.
The strike soon spread to other parts of India. The ratings in Calcutta, Madras, Karachi and Vizag also went on strike shouting slogans "Strike for Bombay" "Release 11,000 INA prisoners" and "Jai Hind".
Four days later, on the 22nd February, there was complete break down of law and order in Bombay. There was unprecedented arson and looting.
The most significant factor was that Hindus and Muslims combined to fight the British. And remember this was just before independence at the height of the movement for Pakistan. Even the burhka-clad women of Bhendi Bazaar, which was the worst affected area, joined in the agitation throwing pots and pans, from the roof tops, at the British soldiers who were called out to patrol the streets.
Shockingly this Mutiny in the armed forces got no support from the national leaders and like all mutinies before it, was largely leaderless. Mahatma Gandhi, in fact, condemned the riots and the ratings' mutiny. He said, "A combination between Hindus and Muslims for the purpose of violent actions is unholy and will lead to and would probably be a precursor to mutual violence - bad for India and the world." Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who was in Bombay, appealed to the agitators to give up violence and agreed to intervene only if they did so.
The British Government on the other hand clearly saw the writing on the wall. They realised that if the men of the Defence forces could not be relied upon then their hold on India would be very shaky. Also a hostile Navy would mean that the links with Britain would be severed.
On the 19th February, a day after the naval mutiny broke out, the British Government announced that a Cabinet Mission would come to India to work out details of Independence of the country from foreign rule.
The 60th anniversary of this amazing event passed by last month and not a pip about it either in the mainstream media or elsewhere. This, despite the fact that the Naval Mutiny might have had a greater impact on the British than the Revolt of 1857. Sadly yet another instance of ignoring the contributions by our Defence forces.
The response of the armed forces was unexpectedly sympathetic, belying the official perception that loyal soldiers were very hostile to the INA 'traitors'. Royal Indian Air Force (RIAF) men in Kohat attended Shah nawaz's meetings and army men in U.P. and Punjab attended INA meetings, often in uniform. RIAF men in Calcutta, Kohat, Allahabad, Bamrauli and Kanpur contributed money for the INA defence, as did other service personnel in U.P.The growing nationalist sentiment, that reached a crescendo around the INA trials, developed into violent confrontations with authority in the winter of 1945-46. There were three upsurges - one on 21 November 1945 in Calcutta over the INA trials; the second on 11th February 1946 to protest against the seven year sentence given to one Rashid Ali, an INA officer, and the third in Bombay of 18th February 1946 when the ratings of the Royal Indian Navy (RIN) went on strike.The RIN revolt started on 18th February when 1100 naval ratings of HMIS Talwar struck work at Bombay to protest against the treatment meted out to them - flagrant racial discrimination, unpalatable food and abuses to boot. The arrest of B.C. Dutt, a rating, for scrawling 'Quit India' on the HMIS Talwar, was sorely resented. The next day, ratings from Castle and Fort Barracks joined the strike and on hearing that the HMIS Talwar ratings had been fired upon (which was incorrect) left their posts and went around Bombay in lorries, holding aloft flags containing the picture of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.The news reached Karachi on 19 February, upon which the HMIS Hindustan alongwith one more ship and three shore establishments, went on a lightning strike. Sympathetic token strikes took place in Military establishments in Madras, Vishakhapatnam, Calcutta, Delhi, Cochin, Jamnagar, the Andamans, Bahrain and Aden. Seventy eight ships and 20 shore establishments, involving 20,000 ratings were affected

Good link

2006-04-10T19:36:00.000-07:00

http://www.iosworld.org/publ-13.htm

Ghadar Movement against British Raj

2006-04-10T15:07:00.000-07:00

Barkatullah of Bhopal, one of the founders of the Ghadar party who created a network of anti-British Organizations and who died penniless in Germany in 1927; Syed Rahmat Shah of the Ghadar party who worked as an underground revolutionary in France and was hanged for his part in the unsuccessful Ghadar uprising in 1915; Ali Ahmad Siddiqui of Fyzabad (U.P.) who planned the Indian Mutiny in Malaya and Burma alongwith Syed Mujtaba Husain of Jaunpur and who was hanged in 1917; Umar Sobhani, an industrialist and a millionaire of Bombay who presented a blank cheque to Gandhiji for Congress expenses and who ultimately gave his life for the cause of Independence, Mohammad Basheer, Khuda Bux, A. Zakaria, Zafar Hasan, Allah Nawaz, Abdul Aziz and tens of thousands of revolutionaries have been ignored.

Many Sikh, Muslim and Hindu Punjabis who tasted freedom outside colonial India in USA started Ghadr movement to free India from British rule in early 1900's. These Punjabis, mostly Sikh, were sent to Canada which was under British rule for labour work. They crossed the border over to USA and settled in Western Coast of USA in cities like Portland, San Francisco, San Jose and Los Angeles. These Punjabis created Gurdwaras and established societies. They were subject to draconian laws like "not allowed to marry to american woman" by many of these states at that time. The first Indian political organization to call for complete independence from British rule was the Ghadar (or Gadar) Party, organized in 1913 by Indian immigrants in California. The Ghadar movement was remarkable for many reasons. Although Sikhs from Punjab made up the majority of it's founding members, the movement was completely devoid of any trace of regional or religious chauvinism. It's platform was uncompromisingly secular and called for a total rejection of any form of caste discrimination. And unlike the Congress, it's membership was primarily drawn from the working class and poor peasantry. Sikhs, Muslims, and Hindus of all castes (including Dalits) were welcomed in the movement without bias or discrimination.
The literature of the Ghadar Party was also the clearest in describing the depth of misery that the common people of India experienced under British rule. They were also amongst the first to anticipate the outbreak of the First World War. Correctly sensing that it was an opportunity for the Indian people to liberate themselves from the yolk of colonial rule, they called for a mass movement for total independence. In their widely distributed poster, "Jang Da Hoka" (Declaration of War) they warned of the danger of Indian soldiers being drawn into the British War effort in the First World War.
Unfortunately, the Congress failed to take advantage of this tremendous opportunity and leaders like Gandhi went as far as campaigning for the British War effort, calling upon Indians to enroll in the British Army. This treacherous and sycophantic policy of Gandhi not only drew biting criticism from Ghadar activists, but opposition from other quarters also emerged.
At a time when Gandhi was still addressing "War Recruitment Melas'', Dr. Tuljaram Khilnani of Nawabshah publicly campaigned against War Loan Bonds. Sindh was then part of Bombay Presidency and the Sindh Congress, part of Bombay Provincial Congress Committee. When Gandhi sought election to the AICC from Bombay PCC, the delegate from Sindh opposed his election in view of his support to the British war effort.
Nevertheless, by and large, the Congress was a relatively conservative organization at this time and drew stinging criticism from the Ghadarites. Rejecting the notion that freedom could be won by participating in the oppressive bureaucracy of the British or by pleading with the British for reforms or self-rule, the Ghadarites believed that only a militant mass movement that involved workers and peasants and all other sections of Indian society on a non-sectarian basis could succeed. They envisaged an India that would not only be free from exploitation by the British but would also be free from hunger, homelessness and disease. In their vision of India there would be no place for religious superstition or any socially sanctioned inequities.
Although the Ghadar movement started in California, chapters were established all over the world and by 1916, a million copies of their weekly pamphlet were published and circulated. As the movement grew in strength, there were plans to set up cells of the Ghadar party all over India and thousands of young volunteers attempted to return home and initiate local chapters wherever they could. The British, realizing the dangers posed by this extremely radical movement moved quickly and closed in on the revolutionaries. Hundreds were charged for sedition in the five Lahore Conspiracy Cases. According to one estimate, a total of 145 Ghadarites were hanged, and 308 were given sentences longer than 14 years. Several were sentenced to hard labour in the notorious prison known as Kala Pani in the Andamans.
The Ghadarites were especially successful in winning over Indian soldiers in the British Army and enticing them to revolt. Soldiers in the Hongkong regiments were arrested and court-martialed for distributing Ghadar and sent back to India and imprisoned. Two Singapore regiments rebelled in Penang, but the rebellion was brutally crushed. In Rangoon in January 1915, the 130th Baluchi regiment revolted. 200 soldiers of this regiment were court-martialed. Four soldiers were hanged, 69 were given life imprisonment and 126 were given rigorous imprisonment for varying terms. Pandit Sohan Lal Pathak, one of the outstanding leaders of the Ghadar Party was hanged on February 10, 1916 in Mandalay jail for inciting rebellion against the British rule. The Party was also active amongst Indian soldiers in Iraq and Iran. As a result of their work, the 15th Lancers, stationed in Basra revolted and 64 soldiers were court-martialed. Similarly, the 24th Punjabi and 22nd Pahari regiments also revolted.

The word Ghadr can be commonly translated as mutiny, was the name given to the newspaper edited and published for the Hindustani Association of the Pacific Coast which was founded at Portland, United States of America, in 1912. The movement this Association gave rise to for revolutionary activities in India also came to be known by the designation of Ghadr.

It is said that by 1908 about 5000 Indians had entered Canada. 99% of which were Punjabis and 90% Sikhs. Many Indians were also sudying at various universities all over USA. Americans and few Indians established Indo-American National Association. Many students from prominent universities like Berkeley University, Stanford and Harvard joined this association. Lala Hardayal of Stanford University, Sant Teja Singh of Harvard University, and Bhai Parmanand decided to get more students belonging to the poor families for Higher education in the USA and Canada.

Indians who went to the United States and Canada came from rural farming middle class and labour, a large number of among them being ex-servicemen. In the beginning, the Indians went to San Francisco and Stockton in California, Portland and St. John in Oregon and Washington states and to Vancouver and and Victoria in British Columbia n Canada. Such persons as Amar Singh and Gopal Singh who had gone to America in 1905, and Tarak Nath Das and Ram Nath Puri who followed them, starting preaching against the British rule in India. They also started a paper called Azadi ka circular in Urdu. This paper was distributed among the armed forces in India to rouse them against the British. Result was that Canadian government which was under British rule started harassing them. White labour was encouraged to harass foreign labour, while Chinese and Japanese government protested against these atrocities against their nationals, Indian goverment did nothing. The Canadian government further tightened the entry of Indians into Canada. It passed a legislation that newcomers would not be permitted to land on the Canadian soil "unless they came from the country of their birth or citizenship by a continuous journey, and on through tickets purchased before leaving the country of their birth or citizenship. They were also required to possess $200 against the previously fixed sum of $25.
In order to fight the unjust immigration laws, the Indians (mostly Sikhs) organized Khalsa Diwan Society in Vancouver in 1907 with branches in Victoria, Abbotsford, New Westminster, Fraser Hill, Duncan Coombs and Ocean falls. The Sikhs built a Gurdwara at Vancouver which was inaugrated in January 1908. In 1909 only 6 Indians were allowed to visit Canada. Same year Indian immigrants organized Hindustan Association under the presidentship of Bhai Bhag Singh Bhikkivind. Its objectives were to establish Indian rule in India, provision of safeguards from loot by foreigners, etc. The association started two newspapers, Pardesi Khalsa in Punjabi and Svedesh Sevak in Urdu. These activities awakened the Indian immigrants. Persons like Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna, Harnam Singh Tundilat, Udham Singh Kasel, Rakha Ram, Ishar Singh Marhana and others would collect on sundays and other holidays and ponder over the problems. St John and Seattle become center of their activities.
In 1912, at Portland Hindustani Association of Pacific coast was formed with Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna as its president and GD kumar as the general secretary, later Mr Kumar fell ill and his place was taken by Lala Hardyal. Aim of the party was explained as "Today, there begins in foreign lands.. a war agaist British raj.. What is your name? Ghadr. What is your work? Ghadr. Where will Ghadr break out? in India. The time will soon come when rifles and blood will take the place of pen and ink." In simple words, their aim was to get rid of the British raj in India through an armed rebellion.
The first issue of the Ghadr, in Urdu, came out in November 1913 and that in Punjabi a weeks later. The paper was distributed to politico- Indian centres in United States, Canada, Phillipines, Fiji, Sumatra, Japan, Shanghai,Hong Kong, Hankow, Java, Singapore, Malaya Siam, Burma, India and East Afria . Occasionally Ghadr published the following advertisement:Wanted: Enthusiastic and heroic soldiers for
organizing Ghadr in Hindustan:
Renumeration: Death
Reward : Martyrdom
Pension : Freedom
Field of work : Hindustan.

Ghadar Di Goonj was published in Shahmukhi and Gurmukhi. This poetry was hard hitting and simple:
Kuli Kuli Pukarda Jag Saanun Saada Jhulda Kitey Nishan Kiyon Nahin
Kikoon Bachangey Sada Ghulam Rahkey Saanun Rajniti Wala Giyan Kiyon Nahin
Dhayi Totru Kha Gaye Khet Sada Hindustan da Koi Kisan Kiyon Nahin
Marna Bhala Ghulami di Zindagi Ton Nahin Sukhan eh Man Bhulaavney Da
Mulk Jaagyaya Cheen Jo Ghook Suta Dhol Vajyaya Hind Jagaawanney Da
Saanun Lord Na Panditan Kazian Di Nahin Shok Hai Berda Dubavaney Da
Jap Jaap Da Waqt Bateet Hoya Vella Aa Giya Teg Uthavney Da
Pardhkey Ghadr Akhbar Nun Khabar Lagi Vela Aa Giya Ghadr Machavaney Da

Translation:
(We are called coolies in countries abroadWe do not have a flag of our ownWill we always live the life of slaves?Why do we not know the science of politics?A handful people have taken control of our landWhy is not there a caretaker of Hindustan?)
(It is better to die than live a life of servitudeWe should never forget this sayingChina has awakened from its sleepBattle drums of Hindustan's awakening are ragingWe do not need Pandits or KazisAs we do not want our ship to sinkThe time for prayers and Puja is pastThis is the time to pick up the swordThe Ghadar paper is proclaimingThat the time for revolt is here)
It also stated which organisational steps people must take:
Khufiya Raj Societiyan Karo Kaayam Rall Marhatey Bengali De Yaar Ho Jayo
Hindu Sikh Te Momno Karo Jaldi Ik Dusrey De Madadgar Ho Jayo
Ghar Ghar Gupti Sabha Banayo
Logan Ko Mantar Sikhlayo
Har Aik Dil Main Jot Jagayo
Binan Joot Yeh Bhoot Na Jaayi
Jaldi Ghadar Macha Diyo Bhai
(Establish secret political organizationsBengalis and Marathis all should get togetherHindu, Sikh and Muslims all should uniteAnd stand together with each other)
(Form secret societies in every householdArouse the people with the Mantra of freedomStart the spark in every heartWithout force the scourge of British colonialism will not leaveHurry to the call of revolution)
They described the conditions of Hindustan:
Bhukhey Marnn Bacchey Kaall Vich Sadey Khatti Khann Saadi Englistan Walley
Kannak Beejkey Khann Nun Jaun Mildey Paisa Chhadadey Nahin Laggan Valley
Laayiya Tax Firangiyan Bahut Yaaro Bhukhey Marann Gharib Dukaan Valley
Karo Paltan Nun Khabardar Jaakey Sutey Payey Kiyon Teg Chalaan Valley
Musalmaan Pathan Balwan Dogar Singh Soormey Yudh Machaann Valley
Hindustaniyan Morchey Fatey Keetey Burma, Misar Te Cheen Sudan Valley
(Our children are dying in faminesThe English are enjoying the fruit or our toilWe sow wheat but we get barley to eatWe are not left with a penny, all is taken by the tax collectorsThe English have levied heavy taxesPoor shopkeepers are dying of hungerGo and arouse the armyWhy those who wield the sword are asleep?Brave Muslims, Pathans and DograsValiant Sikhs in the battlefieldHindustanis fighting on fronts inBurma, China, Egypt and Sudan)
They exposed the so-called leaders of the Hindustanis, the collaborators of the British:
Jattan Sidhiyan Nun Koi Dosh Nahin Sadey Leaderan Da Manda Haal Singho
Rai Bandran Mulk Veeran Kita Piyar Rakhdey Bandran Nal Singho
Sanun Paas Angrez De Bechaya Hai Aap Mulk De Banney Dalal Singho
(The common folk is not to be blamedOur 'leaders' are traitorsRai Bhadurs, copy cats of the British, have ruined our landThey have sold us to the BritishAnd have become pimps of the British)

The Ghadr party president often visited the Indian groups to exhort them to join freedom movement. Lala Hardyal general secretary was arrested on the pretext of a speech delievered by him three years earlier. Baba Sohna Singh now became the general secretary, Bhai Santokh Singh became President, editing of paper was taken over by Bhai Harnam singh of Kotla Naudh singh. The party's plan was to invade Kashmir from China, then go for the Punjab followed by other provinces. The members started getting training in the use of weapons and making of bombs; several got training in flying aircraft also. One of them, Harnam singh, had his hand blown off while in process of bomb making, and he was thence onwrds known as Tundilat, the armless knight.
The party carried out considerable propaganda in Japan where Maulawi Barkat Ullah was professor in Tokyo University. His prescence attracted many muslims to Ghadr Party. The Kamagatu Maru incident added fuel to fire. The first world war broke out in July 1914. On 5 August, leading memers of Ghadr party declared war on the British and decided to take advantage of the involvement of British in the war. The Ghadr party declared war on the British and decided to come to India to carry out armed revolution against the British.
Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna and his companions left for India on 22 August 1914, the first ship with 26 Indians left Vancouver; on 29 August, another ship with 60-70 Indians left San Francisco for India. According to government records, 2312 Indian Ghadr men had entered India between 13 October 1914 and 25 February 1915. Their influx continued till 1916 when their number increased to more than 8,000. But it is likely that the Ghadr men had entered India in greater numbers than the government knew. Government was very active and at least 50% of them were arrested or confined to their villages by state governments.
The Ghadr party established a new press and published small pamphlets such as: Ghadr Sandesh, Ailan-i-Jang, Tilak, Nadar Mauqa, Rikab~gan;, Canada da Duhhra, Naujavan Utho, Sachchz Pukar, and so on. These pamphlets were published in Punjabi, Urdu and Hindi, and were distributed among the public and the soldiers. The party also produced their own flag having red, yellow and green colours. Dr Mathura Singh supervised factories producing armaments.
The party members contacted students. They contacted soldiers stationed especially at Mian Mir (Lahore), Jalandhar, Firozpur, Peshawar, Jehlum, Rawalpindl, Mardan, Kohat, Bannu, Ambala, Meerut, Kanpur and Agra cantonments. The soldiers were generally in sympathy with the movement. Many party workers joined the army with a view to obtaining arms and ammunition. Contacts were also established with Bengal revolutionaries such as Rash Behari Bose whose close companions were Sachin Sanyal and Vishnu Ganesh Pingle. Pingle acted as a link between the Ghadr party and Bengalis.
The movement faced financial difficulties in India. The expenses had increased owing to opening of various branches, travelling, purchase of arms and ammunition and publications. Money was not easily available as it was in foreign countries. To overcome this difficulty, the party had to resort to forcible acquisition of funds by under-taking political dacoities.
All the preparations completed, the party executive met on 12 February 1915, and decided to start the rebellion on 21 February. Their plan was simultaneously to attack and capture Mian Mir and Firozpur cantonments; 128th Pioneer and 12 Cavalry were to capture Meerut Cantonment and then proceed to Delhi. Units in cantonments in northern 21 India were expected to join the rebellion.
The British Government had intelligence men posted at railway stations in cities and in important villages. The lambardars, zaildars and other village functionaries were also alerted to provide information. The government had managed to plant informers in the Ghadr party itself. Before the new leadership came forward and reorganized the movement's plans, the British Government "knew much more about their designs and was in a better position to cope with them." In spite of this, the Ghadrites in the central Punjab murdered policemen and informers and attempted to derail trains and blow up bridges. Factories for preparing bombs were established. All this made the government feel that they were "living over a mine full of explosives . "
When the party learnt that the information about the D-Day had leaked, they advanced the date of rebellion to 19 February, but this information also reached the police through their informer, Kirpal. The police raided the party headquarters at four different places in Lahore and arrested 13 of the "most dangerous revolutionaries." All cantonments were alerted and the Indian troops placed under vigilance; some were even disarmed. Arrests of Ghadr men took place all over the Punjab. Rash Behari Bose, with the help of Kartar Singh Sarabha, escaped from lahore to Varanasi: Vishnu Ganesh Pingle was arrested at Meerut on 23 March 1915. All the leaders were put in the lahore jail.
The government of the Punjab sought and the Government of India passed under the Defence of India Act wide powers to the Punjab Government who formed a special tribunal of three judges, including one Indian, to try the Ghadr men in the Central Jail, Lahore. Thus the rebellion was smashed by the government before it had really taken shape.
The Ghadr men were tried by the Special Tribunal in what are known as Lahore conspiracy cases in batches. The trial of the first batch began on 26 April 1915. In all, 291 persons were tried and sentenced as under: death for 42, 114 were transported for life, 93 awarded varying terms of imprisonment, 42 were acquitted. Confiscation of property was ordered in the case of many. No one appealed against the punishments. Those who were hanged included Kartar Singh Sarabha, Jagat Singh (Sursingh) Vishnu Ganesh Pingle, Harnam Singh Sialkoti, Bakshish Singh (son of Ishar Singh), Bhai Balvant Singh (Khurdpur), Babu Ram, Harnam Singh, Hafiz Abdulla and Rur Singh (Sanghval).
Under the circumstances, the army units which had promised to join the revolution kept quiet. However, some units such as 26 Punjabi, 7 Rajput, 12 Cavalry, 23 Cavalry, 128 Pioneers, Malaya State Guides,23 Mountain Battery, 24Jat Artillery, 15 Cancers, 22 Mountain Battery,130 Baluch and 21 Punjabi did come out in the open. About 700 men of 5 Light Infantry, located in Singapore, mutineed on 15 February and took possession of the fort. The rebellion was subdued by the British troops; 126 men were tried by court martial which sentenced 37 to death, 41 to transportation for life, and the remy ing to varying terms of imprisonment Soldiers from other units were punished as under: Death Transportation
23 Cavalry
12 Cavalry
130 Baluch
128 Pioneers
1 for life
The party workers also went to Iran and Iraq to instigate Indian troops against the British, and to Turkey to exhort Indian prisoners to fight for India's freedom. In Iran, the party was able to raise an Indian Independence Army. The Army advanced towards Baluchistan, and en route capttlred Kirmanshah. Then they advanced along the coast towards Karachi. Meanwhile, Turkey was defeated and the British had occupied Baghdad. The Indian Independence Army thus losing its base was also defeated.
The Ghadr party contacted Germany, Turkey, Afghanistan, China and other countries, but not much help came from any of these. Germany sympathized with the Ghadr party and occasionally tried to render some help in the form of weapons and money, but these often failed to reach the party. For instance, 5,000 revolvers on board Heny S. which sailed from Manila were captured en route by the British. Germany had also formed an Oriental Bureau for translating and disseminating inflammatory literature to the Indian prisoners of war in Germany.
During World War I, revolutionaries from most countries had gone to Switzerland, which was a neutral country. The Indians there formed Indian Revolutionary Society, also known as Berlin-lndia Committee. The Society had formed a provisional government at Kabul, but had no contacts with the Indian public. The Ghadr party established links with the Society and both agreed to help each other. Germany sent financial help to the Society but, on learning that it was being misappropriated, discontinued it. The Society soon collapsed. No sum ever reached the Ghadr party.
The Ghadr movement, as says O 'Dwyer, "was by far the most serious attempt to subvert British rule in India."
Most of the workers were illiterate—only 25 of them knew Urdu or Punjabi. Still they organized a strong movement which for the time being thrilled the country and made the British panic. Although the movement was suppressed, it provided nucleus for the Akali movement that followed a few years later. The Ghadr leaders were especially prominent among the Babar Akalis.

H.H. Maharajadhiraja Duleep Singh Bahadur, GCSI (25.6.1861). b. at Lahore, 4th September 1838

2006-04-10T14:59:00.000-07:00

1843 - [1893] H.H. Maharajadhiraja Duleep Singh Bahadur, GCSI (25.6.1861). b. at Lahore, 4th September 1838, youngest son of H.H. Maharajadhiraja Ranjit Singh Bahadur, Sher-i-Punjab, Maharaja of the Punjab, by his wife, H.H. Maharani Jindan Kaur Sahiba [Chanda Kaur], educ. privately. Succeeded on the death of his elder brother, 16th September 1843. Installed on the gadi, Shir-i-Punjab, Maharaja of the Punjab, at Lahore Fort, 2nd February 1844. Reigned under the Regency of his mother. The Punjabi forces were decisively beaten by the British at the battle of Gujrat on 21st February 1849, and his territories annexed 16th March 1849. Exiled to Fatehgarh, then allowed to settle in England. Thereafter titled as Maharajadhiraja Duleep Singh Bahadur, with the personal style of His Highness. Becoming a great favourite of Queen Victoria, he was received into the Church of England in 1853. Attempted to return to the Punjab in 1886, but was stopped at Aden and turned back Europe. Escaped to France and tried to persuade the French authorities to assist him in restoring his throne. Converted back to Sikhism in 1888. Failing to excite official interest in France due to British objections, he journeyed to Russia, where he offered his services to the Tsar in an invasion of India. Becoming almost destitute, he requested and received a pardon from his old mentor, Queen Victoria. m. (first) at the British Consulate, Alexandria, Egypt, 7th June 1864, H.H. Maharani Bamba Duleep Singh, CI (1.1.1878) (b. at Alexandria, Egypt, 6th July 1848; d. at Paris, 18th September 1887), educ. American Baptist Christian Mission Sch., Cairo, daughter of Ludwig Muller, a German banker resident, of Ramala, Egypt, by Sofia, an Ethiopian Coptic Christian lady of good family, captured by the Egyptian army and sold as a slave in Cairo. m. (i) at La Madeleine, Paris, 20th May 1889, Maharani Ada Duleep Singh (b. at Kennington, Surrey, 15th January 1869; d. 6th August 1930, bur. St Andrew & St Patrick Churchyard, Elveden, Suffolk), who was not allowed the style of Highness or received at Court, youngest daughter of Charles Douglas Wetherill, Esq. of Great Ormond Street, Holborn, London, sometime Civil Engineer, by his wife, Sarah Charlotte. He d. at the Hotel de la Trémoille, Paris, 23rd October 1893 (bur. St Andrew & St Patrick Churchyard, Elveden, Suffolk), having had issue, four sons and three daughters by his first wife, and two daughters by his second wife:
1) A son b. at Kenmore, Perthshire, 4th August and d. there 5th August 1865 (s/o Maharani Bamba).
2) Captain Prince Victor Albert Jay Duleep Singh. b. in London 10th July 1866 (s/o Maharani Bamba), educ. Eton, Trinity Hall and Downing Colls., Cambridge and at the RMA, Sandhurst. Cmsnd. 2nd-Lieut. 1st Royal Dragoons 1/2/1888, Hon ADC to the GOC Halifax, Nova Scotia 1888-1890, prom. Capt. 1894, resig. 1898. Succeeded on the death of his father as Head of the Royal House of the Punjab, 23rd October 1893. Rcvd: Coron. medals (1902 and 1911). m. at London, 4th January 1898, Anne Blanche Alice [Princess Victor Duleep Singh] (b. 27th January 1874; d.s.p. 2nd July 1956), served in France during the Great War, recd: Coron. medals (1902 and 1911), Médaille de la Reconnaissance, and Médaille de la France Liberée, second daughter of Colonel The Rt. Hon. George William (Coventry), 9th Earl of Coventry, PC, DL, sometime Capt. and Goldstick of the Hon. Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms, Master of the Buckhounds, Lord Lieut. of Worcestershire, etc. by his wife The Rt. Hon. Blanche, Countess of Coventry, third daughter of The Rt. Hon. William (Craven), 2nd Earl of Craven, sometime Lord Lieut. of Warwickshire, High Steward of Newbury, and Recorder of Coventry. Rcvd: Coron. medals (1902 and 1911). He d.s.p. at Monte Carlo, 7th June 1918.
3) Major Prince Frederick Victor Duleep Singh, MVO (28.5.1901), TD (13.3.1919). b. at London, 23rd January 1868 (s/o Maharani Bamba), educ. Eton and Magdalene Coll., Oxon. (MA). Cmsnd. as 2nd-Lieut. Suffolk Imperial Yeomanry (Duke of York's Own Loyal Suffolk Hussars) 12/8/1893, prom. Lieut. 21/7/1894, prom. Capt. 10/8/1898, prom. Maj. Norfolk Imperial Yeomanry (King's Own Royal Regt.) 1901, resig. 1909, resumed service as Maj. 2/1st Norfolk Yeomanry 1/10/1914, and served in the Great War 1914-1918, retd. 1919. Succeeded on the death of his father as Head of the Royal House of the Punjab, 7th June 1918. Amateur archaeologist and historian. Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. Rcvd: Coron. medals (1902 and 1911), 1914 star, Territorial War and Allied Victory medals (1918). He d. unm. at Blo' Norton Hall, Diss, Suffolk, 15th August 1926 (bur. Blo' Norton Churchyard).
4) Prince Albert Edward Alexander Duleep Singh. b. at Blo' Norton Hall, Diss, Suffolk, 20th August 1879 (s/o Maharani Bamba), educ. privately. He d. from pneumonia, at the Albany Hotel, Hastings, Sussex, 22nd April 1893 (bur. St Andrew & St Patrick Churchyard, Elveden, Suffolk).
1) Princess Bamba Sophia Jindan [Princess Bamba Sutherland]. b. at London 29th September 1869 (d/o Maharani Bamba), educ. Somerville Hall, Oxford. m. at London, 1916, Lieutenant-Colonel David Waters Sutherland, CIE (3.6.1917). (b. at Buningyong, Victoria, Australia, 18th December 1871; d. 19th April 1939), educ. Melbourne and Edinburgh Univs. MD, FRCP, MBC; Principal of King Edward's Medical Coll., Lahore 1909-1921, son of John Sutherland, of Allendale, Victoria, Australia. She d.s.p. at 'Gulzar', Model town, Lahore, 3rd October 1957 (or 10th March 1957?) (bur. there at the Christian Cemetery, Gulbarg).
2) Princess Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh. b. at Elveden Hall, Suffolk, 27th October 1871 (d/o Maharani Bamba), educ. Somerville Hall, Oxford. She d. unm. at Hilden Hall, Bucks., 8th November 1942.
3) Princess Sophia Alexandrowna Duleep Singh. b. at Elveden Hall, Suffolk, 8th August 1876 (d/o Maharani Bamba), educ. privately. A militant suffragette who later organised patriotic flag days for Punjabi troops in London during the Great War. She d. unm. at Faraday House, Hampton Court, 22nd August 1948.
4) Princess Pauline Alexandra Duleep Singh [Princess Pauline Torry]. b. at Hotel Billoi, Bolshoi Lubyanka, Moscow, Russia 26th December 1887 (d/o Maharani Ada), educ. privately. m. at London, 1914, J.S.A. Torry (k-i-a at Loos, 19th September 1915), 2nd Lieut. 12th Btn., Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own). She d.s.p. 1926.
5) Princess Ada Irene Helen Beryl Duleep Singh [Princess Ada Villament]. b. at Paris, France 25th October 1889 (d/o Maharani Ada), educ. privately. m. at Paris 15th March 1910, Pierre Marie Villament, a French national. She d.s.p. (committed suicide by drowning) at Monaco, 14th September 1926.

Princess Bamba Sophia Jindan [Princess Bamba Sutherland]

2006-04-10T14:30:00.000-07:00

Princess Bamba Sophia Jindan [Princess Bamba Sutherland]. b. at London 29th September 1869 (d/o Maharani Bamba), educ. Somerville Hall, Oxford. m. at London, 1916, Lieutenant-Colonel David Waters Sutherland, CIE (3.6.1917). (b. at Buningyong, Victoria, Australia, 18th December 1871; d. 19th April 1939), educ. Melbourne and Edinburgh Univs. MD, FRCP, MBC; Principal of King Edward's Medical Coll., Lahore 1909-1921, son of John Sutherland, of Allendale, Victoria, Australia. She d.s.p. at 'Gulzar', Model town, Lahore, 3rd October 1957 (or 10th March 1957) (bur. there at the Christian Cemetery, Gulburg).

The photograph shows Princess Bamba Sophia Jindan [1869-1957] and Princess Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh [1871-1942], the older daughters of Duleep Singh, the last Maharaja of Punjab, who signed over the ownership of the Kohinoor diamond to the British.

The Princesses were born to Duleep Singh’s first wife, Maharani Bamba [daughter of a German banker and a Coptic Christian slave from Abyssinia]. Duleep Singh spent most of his life in England. He later became anathema to the British by plotting against their imperial interests.
Studying at Chicago she was so upset by an insult that she considered moving to Toronto( the story was reported in The London [Ontario] Advertiser, January 31, 1902).
All her belongings and collections were donated to the Museum at Lahore or were bequeathed to Pir Karim Bakhsh Supra of Lahore who sold them to the Government of Pakistan.
The collection consists of 18 oil paintings, 14 water colours, 22 ivory paintings, 17 photographs, 10 metallic objects and 7 miscellaneous articles and are on display in th Fort.
Princess Bamba Sophia died in Lahore, Pakistan, and claimed to be the real ruler of Punjab. Princess Catherine died unmarried and was so devoted to her German governess Fraulein Lina Schafer, that in her will she stated that one quarter of her ashes were to be buried as near as possible to Schafer’s grave.
The ancestral houses of the princess, included the ‘shahi kothi’ with the address of 104, Model Town, and one at Gulzar Model Town ,both in Lahore.

Princess Catherine Duleep Singh. She lived at Colehatch House and Hilden Hall - now a housing estate. Her will made in 1935: `I, Princess Catherine Hilda Duleep Singh desire to be cremated and the ashes buried at Elveden in Suffolk. I give my gold jewellery, my long pearl necklace and my wearing apparel to my sisters Princess Bamba Sophie Jinda Sutherland and Princess Sophia Alexandrowna Duleep Singh.' In a codicil she asked for a quarter of her ashes to be `buried as near as possible to the coffin of my friend Fraulein Lina Schafer at the Principal Cemetery at Kassel in Germany.'

Heroic Judges Who Refused to take oath under PCO

2006-04-09T21:25:00.000-07:00

13 JUDGES REFUSED TO TAKE OATH UNDER THE PCO OF 1999

Thirteen judges of the superior judiciary, including Chief Justice of Pakistan Mr Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, ceased to hold office after they refused to take fresh oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO), on January 26, 2000.
Mr Justice Irshad Hassan Khan became the new chief justice of Pakistan as the judges of the Supreme Court, Federal Shariat Court and four High Courts were administered oath under the PCO.
Six judges of the apex court, including the chief justice, refused to take fresh oath. The other seven judges who were not invited for the oath were two from the Lahore High Court (LHC), two from Peshawar High Court (PHC) and three from Sindh High Court (SHC).
The seven Supreme Court judges who took oath under the PCO were Mr Justice Irshad Hassan Khan (Chief Justice), Mr Justice Bashir Jehangiri, Mr Justice Abdur Rehman Khan, Mr Justice Shaikh Riaz Ahmed, Mr Justice Munir A Shaikh, Mr Justice Shaikh Ejaz Nisar, and Mr Justice Ch Mohammad Arif.
The heroic judges with grit enough to refuse the military diktat of taking Oaths under the PCO(Provisional Constitutional Order) as against the abrogated Constitution of 1973 were:

The judges who refused were Chief Justice Mr Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui (who was due to retire on Nov 11, 2000), Mr Justice Mamoon Kazi (retiring date Dec 29, 2000), Mr Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid (Feb 2, 2000), Mr Justice Khalilur Rehman (April 24, 2001), Mr Justice Wajihuddin Ahmed (November 2003), and Mr Justice Kamal Mansoor Alam (April 2002).

In Punjab, 41 out of total 43 judges of the Lahore High Court were administered the oath. Only two judges -- Mr Justice Ehsanul Haq Ch and Mr Justice Najamul Hassan Kazmi -- did not take oath.
In Sindh, three High Court judges -- Mr Justice Dr Ghous Muhammad, Mr Justice Rasheed Ahmed Razvi and Mr Justice Mushtaq Ahmed Memon -- were not invited to take fresh oath under POC in Karachi.
In Quetta, Chief Justice of Balochistan High Court (BHC) Mr Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and four other High Court judges took a fresh oath under PCO.
The fresh crisis with the judiciary refreshed the memories of General Zia's sacking of 19 Supreme Court and High Court Judges who refused to take oath under his PCO of 1981. Feeling that he had been badly used, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Anwarul Haq, who had headed the bench which approved Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's hanging, refused to take the oath. The former Chief Justice of the Lahore Court, Molvi Mushtaq Ahmad who had sentenced Bhutto to death in the first place, although willing to take the oath was not asked to do so. While sacking the judges, General Zia explained: "We want the judiciary to mind their own business and not to meddle in anything else. Power is an intoxicant. Please do not get me wrong. I personally have not been intoxicated with this. I want to share power, but I refuse to share power with those who do not entitle themselves.[28]
Apparently, the new oath was required for the same reasons as prevailed in March 1981 when General Zia ordered the new oath. A number of constitutional challenges to General Zia's rule were pending before the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice Anwarul Haw was understood to have set them down for hearing shortly. The PCO killed all such petitions. A number of constitutional petitions against the military takeover were fixed before the Supreme Court for January 31, 2000. Like the 1981 PCO, General Musharraf's PCO-1 removed the power of the judiciary to decide whether a legislation was valid. Any judge who took the oath bound himself in advance not to question anything contained in the order.
OATH UNDER PCO DENOUNCED
There was a wide condemnation by the lawyers, political parties and human rights bodies of the oath-taking of judges under the Provisional Constitution Order. The Pakistan Human Rights Commission, in a statement, said that the military government has gone further down the anti-democratic road by forcing the judges, like General Ziaul Haq, to take their oath afresh under the PCO. The act has put an end to the pretence that the country is still being constitutionally governed and that the judiciary continues to act in accordance with its oath to the Constitution, it added. "The later (judiciary) has now, by its swearing of a new allegiance, become a creature not of the Constitution but of the chief of the army staff acting as the country's self-appointed chief executive….By not acting in unison and in accordance with their oath and conscience, the judges have done further harm to the institution and the national good. There is some comfort only in that they are more numerous than the last time round and this time they include the chief justice himself." [29]
Former chief justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, [30] in a press interview, said that he chose not to take fresh oath under the Provisional Constitution Order because it was a "clear-cut deviation" from the Constitution. When asked why this time more judges resigned than in 1981 when judges were asked by the then Chief Martial Law Administrator, General Ziaul Haq to take oath under a Martial Law Order, Justice Siddiqui replied, "Because most of the judges then were appointed by the then military government. Even I was an appointee of a military dictator. But later I took oath under the 1973 Constitution as Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court, then as a judge of the Supreme Court and later as the CJP." [31]
However, the fresh oath by judges under the Provisional Constitutional Order, did not come as a surprise for lawyers specially in the wake of pending constitutional petitions against the military takeover. The action of October 12, when the military took over in a bloodless coup, was an extra-constitutional step; therefore, the oath of judges under the PCO was expected. Mohammad Ali Saeed, advocate and former Sindh High Court judge said that he was expecting that such order has to come before January 31. A set of constitutional petitions against the military takeover is fixed before the Supreme Court on that day. LHCBA President Javed Gillani however termed the new oath as "a natural act," and said "it had to happen." He also added that this was nothing new, and was in fact expected under a military regime, as had happened in the past. [32]
Former Supreme Court chief justice Sajjad Ali Shah justified the need of the oath under PCO, saying that with the Constitution suspended, it was a legal requirement. "To validate the system, a PCO had been proclaimed. "When Gen Zia's martial law was forced, the Constitution was not abrogated but suspended at that time too." This time too, he said, the Constitution had been suspended and not abrogated. "And PCO has replaced the Constitution. The PCO is a substitute of the Constitution. In 1981 too, fresh oath was taken and many judges had lost their jobs. And Chief Justice Anwarul Haq of the Supreme Court, who had written the judgment in the Nusrat Bhutto case, had also taken the oath under PCO." [33]

Ustad Daman, Nationalist Punjabi Poet

2006-04-09T21:13:00.000-07:00

The Poet Laureate of the Twentieth Century Punjab
On his death Habib Jalib said ‘Ustad Daman was a great nationalist. He represented faithfully the opinions and desires of the deprived folk. People cannot forget him.’
Faiz Ahmed Faiz on being asked why he did not write poetry in Punjabi, replied that he could not compete with the old masters like Sultan Bahu, Bulleh Shah, Waris Shah and others. The only one who could be ranked with them today was Ustad Daman.
Born on 3rd September 1911 in Lahore as Chiragh Din – his father was a tailor and his mother a washerwomen. In an interview the Ustad said that since his mother was a washerwoman, his mind remained clean: his father being a tailor implied that he could stitch torn fragments of life with patches of love.
He went regularly to school for his primary education. Afterwards he had to work and find time for going to school and passed his matriculation examination. He could not continue his education further. However, at the young age of 7-8 years he started writing and reciting verses.
In 1930 he stitched a suit for Mian Iftikhar-ud-din. When Mian came for the delivery, Ustad Daman was singing his own verses, which impressed Mian Sahib greatly. He invited him to recite his poem at a public meeting organised by the Indian National Congress. He became an instant hit and Pandit Nehru, who was there dubbed him as the ‘Poet of Freedom’. He first wrote under the pen name Humdam, which was later changed to Daman. The title ‘Ustad’ was bestowed on him by the people. After that he became a regular participant in these meetings. He believed that the unity of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs was essential, if the struggle for freedom was to be carried on successfully. An example of his patriotic poetry may be given.
‘In China the Chinese are grand,In Russia they do as they have planned.In Japan its people rule over its strand.The British rule the land of England,The French hold the land of France,In Teheran the Persians make their stand.The Afghans hold on to their highland,Turkmenistan’s freedom bears the Turkmen’s brand,How very strange is indeed this fact,That freedom in India is a contraband.’
During the partition in 1947 he lost his wife and child, he was later re-united with them – only to lose them to disease, for which he could not afford the treatment. His poor friends had to chip in for the burial. As he was a Congressman, his house was burnt and his library and writings were destroyed. He shifted to a verandah of the Shahi Mosque, where he spent the rest of his life. After this he kept no record of his poetry and whatever is available to us today is due to the efforts (and memory) of his admirers.
After the partition, he visited India for a Mushaira, where he recited his poem (given below), ‘We may not speak but in our hearts we know/ you have lost and we too have lost in this divide.’
The poem was enthusiastically received and Pandit Nehru requested that he stay on in India. He refused, saying ‘Panditji, it is difficult to part from the soil of one’s birthplace.’ Later on many cases were foisted against him and he had to spend time in prison. On another visit to India, he was again asked to stay on, but he said, ‘I prefer to live in Pakistan, even though it may be behind prison walls.’ (To a similar request by Sardar Jafri, Habib Jalib replied ‘Here the mullahs will put me in prison and there the pandits. So where is the choice.’)
He wrote Sufi poetry and poetry against the British rule. After 1947, he continued to write about the troubles which beset the people and exposed the machinations of the so-called political leaders:

‘A Trinity of Gods rule Pakistan,Nazim, Azam and Zafrullah Khan’.
(Those three being then the Governor General, the Commander-in-Chief and the Foreign Minister respectively).

Later on he continued to write against Ayub, Yahya Khan, Bhutto and General Zia. One of his great poems is on General Zia’s ‘Martial Law’ yet, strange to say, Zia had to pay a tribute to him after his death.

However in the 1965 war against India, his stand became for a short while communal (unlike Faiz, Jalib, Farogh Bukhari and others. But here many on our side of the border were bitten by the communal bug too). There is a curious silence about the events in East Pakistan in 1971. Perhaps he was too shell-shocked or perhaps the record is no longer available.
He also wrote a few film songs – in Punjabi and Urdu – due to the insistence of the progressive actor Allau-ud-din Khan (who also roped in Habib Jalib). However, he made a great contribution to the genre ‘Heer’. He had great respect for Waris Shah’s poetry but complained that Waris Shah’s Ranjha had less the features of a Punjabi peasant– he was more of a dandy of the Lucknow style. The musical rhythym and lyricism of Heer has a distinctly Punjabi flavour and is not amenable to translation, and I have not been foolhardy enough to try it. However, sometimes, his ‘Heers’ became a song of protest:

‘A man can do whatever he wants,
Agreed, that calamitous times are still ahead.
Let Ranjha just set off to Takht Hazare
Soon Jhang of Syals will crumble under his tread.’
(Here Ranjha stands for the exploited class and the Syals for the exploiters.)

In November 1984 he was suffering from very poor health. Faiz visited him and requested him to shift to a more comfortable place but Daman refused. However he had to be shifted to the Services Hospital medical ward, where Habib Jalib was a fellow patient. Faiz died on 20th November and Daman said that, despite his illness, he would go to lend his shoulder to Faiz’s bier. Habib Jalib was also ill. As the Punjabi poet and author Ahmed Saleem reports,
‘The (Faiz funeral) procession was stopped. Ustad Daman, a mentor of Faiz, who was hospitalised, insisted on being carried and stood there unwilling to leave his side.’

A few days later, on December 3, 1984 Ustad Daman too passed away.

Many tributes were paid to him (including as mentioned above, by General Zia). Habib Jalib wrote two Punjabi poems and one in Urdu on his death. Jalib’s collection of Punjabi poems was dedicated to Ustad Daman. One of his Punjabi poems is given below in translation.

‘He lived in a hut, but wore the poets’ crown,Amongst people, as Daman, he won renown, This poet who wore the crown.
He did not became a courtier, as others did, Not even in forgetfulness did he do the establishment’s bid,For poor deprived people he laid his life down,
This poet who wore the crown.
The oppressors were laid low by his poetic might,Amidst tempests, his lamp continued to give light,With pride he will be remembered in every village and town,
This poet who wore the crown.’

ESTHER JOHN (born Qamar Zia), Anglican Martyr

2006-04-09T20:49:00.000-07:00

ESTHER JOHN was born Qamar Zia, on 14 October 1929, one of seven children. As a child she attended a government school and, after the age of seventeen, a Christian school. There she was profoundly moved by the transparent faith of one of her teachers, and she began to read the Bible earnestly. It was when reading the 53rd chapter of Isaiah that she was suddenly overtaken by a sense of conversion to this new religion.
When India was partitioned Qamar Zia moved with her family into the new state of Pakistan. Here she made contact with a missionary, Marian Laugesen in Karachi. Laugesen, at her request, passed on to her a New Testament. Her Christian faith grew privately, even secretly. Then, seven years later, she ran away from home, fearful of the prospect of marriage to a Muslim husband. She found her way back to Laugesen in Karachi.
For a while Qamar Zia worked in an orphanage there, and it was at this time that she took the name Esther John. Her family still pressed her to return and to marry, but on 30 June 1955 she took a train north to Sahiwal, in the Punjab. Here she lived and worked in a mission hospital, stayed with the first Anglican bishop of Karachi, Chandu Ray, and celebrated her first Christmas. Finding a vocation to teach, she entered the United Bible Training Centre in Gujranwala in September 1956. In April 1959 she completed her studies there and moved to Chichawatni, some thirty miles from Sahiwal, living with American Presbyterian missionaries. She evangelized in the villages, travelling from one to the other by bicycle, teaching women to read and working with them in the cotton fields. At times her relationship with her distant and perplexed family appeared calm; at others anxiety and tension brewed.
Her death was sudden and mysterious. On 2 February 1960 Esther John was found dead in her bed at the house where she lived at Chichawatni. She had been brutally murdered.
Her body was taken to the Christian cemetery at Sahiwal and buried. Later, a memorial chapel was built in front of the nurses’ home in the grounds of the hospital there. Today, Esther John is remembered with devotion by the Christian community with whom she lived and worked.

Dr. Ms. Fatima Jinnah

2006-04-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Fatima Jinnah (فاطمہ جناح) was the sister of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan and an active political figure in freedom movement against British Raj, and the vanguard of democracy against the opportunistic military rulers who had hijacked the government of this fledgling democratic country right after its inception at Partition.

Dr. Fatima Jinnah was born on July 31, 1893 in Karachi. Of a family of seven brothers and sisters, she was the closest to Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Her illustrious brother became her guardian upon the death of their father in 1901. Encouraged by her brother but opposed by the rest of her family, she received excellent early education. She joined the Bandra Convent in Bombay in 1902. In 1919 she got admitted to the highly competitive University of Calcutta where she attended the Dr. Ahmad Dental College. After she qualified, Miss Jinnah went along with her idea of opening a dental clinic in Bombay in 1923.
Miss Fatima Jinnah initially lived with her brother for about eight years till 1918, when he got married to Rutanbai. Upon Rutanbai's death in February 1929, Miss Jinnah wound up her clinic, moved into Jinnah's bungalow, and took charge of his house; thus beginning the life-long companionship that lasted till her brother's death on September 11, 1948.

During the transfer of power in 1947, she was an inspiration to Muslim women. She formed the Women's Relief Committee, which later formed the nucleus for the All Pakistan Women's Association (APWA). She also played a significant role in the settlement of refugees (Muhajir) in the new state of Pakistan.

Miss Jinnah's greatest advantage was that she was sister of the Founder of Pakistan and had been detached from the political conflicts that had plagued Pakistan after the Founder's death. The sight of this dynamic lady moving in the streets of big cities, and even in the rural areas of a Muslim country, was both moving and unique.

She proclaimed that her opponent presidential candidate, serving General (and self-proclaimed Field Marshal and President) Ayub Khan, a dictator. Miss Jinnah's line of attack was that by coming to terms with India on the Indus Water dispute, Ayub had surrendered control of the rivers over to India. Her campaign generated such tremendous public enthusiasm that most of the press agreed that if the contest were by direct election, she would have won against Ayub.
Miss Jinnah stood in national elections in 1965 against the then President of Pakistan, Muhammad Ayub Khan, but could not win due to tactics of establishment.

Although she was unfairly declared unsuccessful in the elections but she kindled the torch of democracy in Pakistan.

Her memory is held in high esteem in Pakistan. Due to her tireless services for Pakistan, the nation conferred upon her the title of Madar-i-Millat means "Mother of the Nation".

She died in Karachi on July 8, 1967.

H.H. SIR AGHA KHAN III, President League of Nations

2006-04-09T20:32:00.000-07:00

H.H. SIR AGHA KHAN III, SIR SULTAN MUHAMMAD SHAH : He was the hereditary spiritual leader of the Ismaili sect. He was born at Karachi and succeeded to the Imammate in 1885. He was a member of the imperial legislative council from 1902 to 1904. In 1903 he became the president of the reception committee of the All-India Muslim Education Conference and presided over its Delhi[Dehli] session in 1904. In a meeting with the Viceroy Lord Rippon in 1906 at Simla he, as the leader of the Muslim delegation, suggested a seperate electorate for Muslims.
From 1906 to 1912 he was the President of the All-India Muslim League. He also convened a Hindu-Muslim unity conference at Allahabad[U.P.]. In 1911 he raised three million rupees for the Aligarh Muslim University. In 1921 he was appointed the Vice Chancellor of this University[A.M.U.]. He was president of the All Parties Muslim Conference 1928-9.
In 1930-33, he was chairman of the British Indian delegation to the round table conferences. In 1932 he suggested a pact of minorities which facilitated the announcement of the communal award. He became a privy counciller in 1934. He represented India in the assembly of the League of Nations in 1932 and in 1934-37. He ws the first Asian to have been elected the president of the League of Nations in 1937.
The Aga Khan travelled in distant parts of the world to receive the homage of his followers, and with the object either of settling differences or of advancing their welfare by pecuniary help and personal advice and guidance. The distinction of a Knight Commander of the Indian Empire was conferred upon him by Queen Victoria in 1897 (and later Knight Grand Commander in 1902 by Edward VII) and he received like recognition for his public services from the German emperor, the sultan of Turkey, the shah of Persia and other potentates. In 1934 he was made a member of the Privy Council. The Aga Khan was also a founding member and President of the "All India Muslim League," which advocated the division of United India in to Pakistan and India.
He was also an owner of thoroughbred racing horses, including five winners of the Epsom Derby.
Bypassing his son Aly Khan, he was succeeded by his grandson Aga Khan IV
He married, in 1893, Shahazda Begum.
He married, in 1903, Teresa Magliano.
He married, in 1929, Andrée Joséphine Carron.
He married, in 1944, Yvette Blanche Labrousse, elected "Miss Lyon 1929", then "Miss France 1930", named Om Habibah September 10, 1944, and later called HH Begum Mata Salamat (Mother of the Peace)
The Aga Khan died in Switzerland and was burried in Egypt.

Ghazi Ilm Din Shaheed:1908-1929

2006-04-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

During the British Raj (1899) a book by the name ‘Satyarath Parkash’ was published which was full of animosity towards Islam. In 1927 Rajpal publishers of Lahore published its last edition. The popularity of this book among the Hindu community encouraged Rajpal to publish another book, but this time the target was none other than Prophet Muhammad :saw: He published a book by the name ‘Rangeela Rasool’ which was full of defamatory material deliberately meant to insult and inflame. Case was filed, rallies were held, resolutions passed but to no effect.
Several attempts were made on Ragpal but to no avail, finally a young man ‘Ilm Din’ with his friend ‘ Sheeda’ made plan to kill Ragpal. Both of them wanted to do the job, in the end it was Ilm Din who got the chance & killed Rajpal. In the word’s of Allama Iqbal “ assi gallan e kardey rah gaye te tarkhana da munda bazi ley gya”. It’s in punjabi I think the translation would go like this “ we only used to talk, the carpenter’s son moved ahead and did the job”Ilm Din got arrested & the session court sentenced him to death, an appeal was filed in the High court but to no avail. Ilm Din’s reaction to the court decision was, he said: “Alhamdulilah! I just wanted this, I didn’t want to live my whole life in the jail like a coward rather it’s better to sacrifice my life for Prophet Muhammad :saw: . May Allah accept my sacrifice” & finally he was hanged on Dec, 1929.

Shaheed Bhagat Singh (1907 - 1931)

2006-04-09T18:19:00.000-07:00

Bhagat Singh was born in a Sikh family of farmers in the village of Banga of Layalpur district of Punjab (now in Pakistan) on September 27th of 1907. His family stood for patriotism, reform, and freedom of the country. His grandfather Arjun Singh was drawn to Arya Samaj, a reformist movement of Hinduism, and took keen interest in proceedings of the Indian National Congress. Bhagat Singh's father Kishen Singh and uncle Ajit Singh were members of Ghadr Party founded in the U.S. in early years of this century to route British rule in India. Both were jailed for alleged anti-British activities. Ajit Singh had 22 cases against him and was forced to flee to Iran. Thereafter he went to Turkey, Austria, Germany and finally to Brazil to escape Black Water (Kalapani) punishment for his revolutionary activities in India.
The Jalianwala Bagh Massacre
Young Bhagat Singh was brought up in a politically charged state of Punjab which was left with a seething memory of the Jalianwala massacre of more than 400 innocent lives and thousands injured (1919). As a lad of fourteen he went to this spot to collect soil from the park of Jalianwala (bagh) in his lunch box, sanctified by the blood of the innocent and kept it as a memento for life.
Bhagat Singh was studying at the National College founded by Lala Lajpatrai, a great revolutionary leader and reformist. To avoid early marriage, he ran away from home and, became a member of the youth organization Noujawan Bharat Sabha which had memberships of all sects and religions. He met Chandrashekhar Azad, B.K. Dutt and other revolutionaries. They used to print handouts and newspapers in secret and spread political awareness in India through Urdu, Punjabi and English. These were all banned activities in India at the time, punishable with imprisonment.
The Simon Commission, Murder of Lala Lajpatrai and the Revenge
Anti-British feelings were spreading; Indians wanted some proper representation in running the administration of their country to which British reciprocated only on paper. Noticing restlessness was spreading, the British Government appointed a commission under the leadership of Sir John Simon in 1928, to report on political happenings. There was no single Indian member in this commission, and all the political parties decided to boycott the commission when it planned to visit major cities of India.
In Lahore, Lala Lajpatrai (picture) and Pandit Madan Mohan Malavia decided to protest to the commission in open about their displeasure. It was a silent protest march, yet the police chief Scott had banned meetings or processions. Thousands joined, without giving room for any untoward incident. Even then, Scott beat Lala Lajpatrai severely with a lathi (bamboo stick) on the head several times. Finally the leader succumbed to the injuries.
Bhagat Singh who was an eye witness to the morbid scene vowed to take revenge and with the help of Azad, Rajguru and Sukhadev plotted to kill Scott. Unfortunately he killed Mr. Sanders, a junior officer, in a case of mistaken identity. He had to flee from Lahore to escape death punishment.
Bomb in the Assembly
Instead of finding the root cause for discontent of Indians, the British government took to more repressive measures. Under the Defense of India Act, it gave more power to the police to arrest persons to stop processions with suspicious movements and actions. The act brought in the council was defeated by one vote. Even then it was to be passed in the form of an ordinance in the "interest of the public." No doubt the British were keen to arrest all leaders who opposed its arbitrary actions, and Bhagat Singh who was in hiding all this while, volunteered to throw a bomb in the central assembly where the meeting to pass the ordinance was being held. It was a carefully laid out plot, not to cause death or injury but to draw the attention of the government, that the modes of its suppression could no more be tolerated. It was agreed that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt would court arrest after throwing the bomb.
It was a forgone conclusion in 1929 April 8th at Delhi Central Assembly. Singh and Dutt threw handouts, and bombed in the corridor not to cause injury and courted arrest after shouting slogans Inquilab Zindabad (Long Live, Revolution!)
Meanwhile the killers of Sanders were identified by the treachery of Bhagat Singh's friends who became "Approvers." Bhagat Singh thought the court would be a proper venue to get publicity for the cause of freedom, and did not want to disown the crime. But he gave a fiery statement giving reasons for killing which was symbolic of freedom struggle. He wanted to be shot like a soldier, and not die at the gallows. But, his plea was rejected, and he was hanged on the 23rd of March 1931. He was 24.
Bhagat Singh became a legendary hero for the masses. Innumerable songs were composed about him, and the youth throughout the country made him their ideal. He became a symbol of bravery and a goal to free India.

Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Poet, Lenin Prize Laureate

2006-04-09T18:12:00.000-07:00

The real award for a poet is the love and appreciation of his fans. Faiz stands among those who enjoy both at one and the same time. Besides he was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in 1963, as the first Asian poet. Before his death in 1984 he was also a nominee for the award of Nobel Prize, but his association in later life, with Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Movement, and the Editorship of Lotus, deprived him of the award because the Zionist element in the controlling body of the Nobel Prize is strong.
Faiz was acknowledged long ago as the greatest Urdu poet after Iqbal. Even those who were critical of his progressive social and political beliefs could not deny him that position, although they always qualified their praise of him by regretting that such a good man should have fallen among the Communists.

Date of Birth: February 13th, 1911Place: Sialkot (Punjab), Pakistan
Faiz's mother was Sultan Fatima. Faiz's father died in Sialkot in 1913. Faiz's father was a learned man and enjoyed the company of well-known literary persons. Wrote the biography of Amir Abdur Rehman. Faiz was therefore, born in a respectable and literary environment and was a very promising student with a religious background.
Primary Education: Started memorizing the Holy Quran at the age of four and in 1916 started his formal education in the famous school of Moulvi Ibrahim Sialkoti, and learnt Urdu, Persian and Arabic. Was admitted to the Scotch Mission High School in 1921 in Class IV. Passed his Matriculation Examination in the 1st Division from Murray College, Sialkot and during this period learnt Persian and Arabic from Allama Iqbal's teacher, Shamsul Ullama Moulvi Syed Meer Hasan.
College Education: Passed his B.A. (Honours) in Arabic from the Government College, Lahore and then M.A. in English from the same College in 1932. Passed his M.A. in Arabic in the 1st Division, from Oriental College, Lahore.
Employment: Lecturer in English at M. A. O. College, Amritsar in 1935 and then at Hailey College of Commerce, Lahore. Joined the Army as Captain in 1942 and worked in the department of Public Relations in Delhi. Was promoted to the rank of Major in 1943, and Lieut. Colonel in 1944. Resigned from The Army in 1947 and returned to Lahore, where, in 1959 appointed as Secretary, Pakistan Arts Council and worked in that capacity till 1962. Returning from London in 1964 he settled down in Karachi and was appointed as Principal, Abdullah Haroon College , Karachi. Editorship of the monthly magazine Adabe-Latif from 1947 to 1958. Worked as Editor under the Progressive Papers Ltd, of the Pakistan Times, the Urdu newspaper Imroze and the weekly Lailo-Nihar. In the 1965 war between India & Pakistan he worked in an honorary capacity in the Department of Information. Acted as Editor of the magazine Lotus in Moscow, London and Beirut.
Marriage & Children: In March 9th, arrested under Safety Act and charged in the Rawalpindi Conspiracy case, and having borne the hardships of imprisonment for four years and one month in the jails of Sargodha, Montgomery (now Sahiwal) Hyderabad and Karachi, was released on April 2nd, 1955.

Sir Ganga Ram (1851-1927)

2006-04-09T17:35:00.000-07:00

Sir Ganga Ram (1851-1927), a civil engineer and leading philanthropist of his times founded the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in 1921 at Lahore. The Janaki Devi Hospital and later the Fatima Jinnah Medical College were made on same but expanded premises by the government of Pakistan.

After the partition in 1947, the another namesake hospital was established in New Delhi on a plot of land of approximately 11 acres. The foundation was laid in April 1951 by the then Prime Minister of India, Shri Jawahar Lal Nehru and inaugurated by him on 13 April 1954.

His grand-daughter Baroness Shreela Flathers, British House of Lords says: "Without Ganga Ram Lahore would never have been the city I have known since childhood. Let me give you a preview of a letter the NCA people have secured from Sir Ganga Ram’s great grand daughter for inclusion in the reprint. She now lives in Britain. She says about her great grandpa:I never had the chance to see my great grandfather but his presence permeated my childhood. Everything we did, everywhere we went, great grandfather’s name was there and his presence was almost tangible. If we went to the hospital, it was the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, if we went to the village it was Gangapur. My school was Sir Ganga Ram Girls’ School, now Lahore College. The teachers were trained in the training college attached to the school, the doctors were trained in the medical college attached to the hospital. For me living in Lahore as a child was living in the massive shadow of great grandfather.Of course, at that time I had no conception of what he had achieved. All I knew was that he had made a huge amount of money but had in turn given away equally huge amounts to all sorts of causes. My mother said that he always said “that the more I give the more I get.” All us children knew the legend that he had to study under the street lamp because his parents were too poor even to provide him with a lamp in the home. It is amazing to think how a young boy from such a beginning could reach the heights that Ganga Ram did. A true visionary, a man so ahead of his time.One of his great causes which has been mentioned in the Introduction of the book was the situation of Hindu Widows. He was deeply distressed by the way widows were treated in general but particularly about the cruel fate inflicted on little girls widowed after child marriages. Amongst numerous institutions such as widows homes, orphanages etc. he also set up two homes for unmarried mothers in the days when most people either killed the girls or threw them out, forcing them to go on the streets. These girls were taught to sew and embroider so that they could earn a decent living.Recently, I heard about a micro hydro project from someone from the department for International Development in UK as a new way to generate electricity in developing countries. Great grandfather had already set up his micro hydro project in Renala in the early part of the twentieth century to generate electricity which he gave free to everyone around! It seems to me that it would be worth revisiting his innovations to see how they suit the conditions of our countries today.As I have lived my life as a person of action and reached positions which would not be expected from an Asian woman in UK, my one desire would be to have an opportunity to have a dialogue with my great grandfather. This remarkable man cared deeply about people and his country and had the boundless energy to do so much in so many directions.The lady signs herself Shreela Flather. She is a baroness. I wish she had grown up in Lahore. Only then she could have some idea of what her great grandfather meant for the city of Lahore. As noted above, he got more than he gave. This is an understatement. Actually he gave much more to the city than he ever got. And then he could never even dream of 1947.
His shrine is at Lahore opposite the Badshahi Mosque.

Masud Khaddarposh - Human Rights Activist

2006-04-09T17:20:00.000-07:00

MOHAMMAD MASUD (1916-1985)
Born in 1916 in Lahore; son of Dr. Ghulam Jilani, a renowned hakeem and personal physician to the Shah of Iran, Masud graduated with a Bachelor's degree from Government College Lahore after which he joined Law College, Punjab University where he stood first in the LLB examination in 1937, breaking all previous records of the Indian sub-continent. In 1941 he joined the Indian Civil Service and proceeded to St. John's College, Oxford, for further education and training.
Upon his return to India, his first posting as a Government Officer was in Ahmadnagar, Bombay Presidency, from here he was sent to Khandesh, for the uplift of the downtrodden Bhil tribes. During his two years amongst the Bhils, M. Masud was able to free the tribes from the clutches of the Hindu moneylenders and successfully revived their language and culture. His untiring efforts and sacrifices beyond the call of duty for the Bhils, earned him the sacred title of Masud Bhagwan.
In 1946, M. Masud was transferred to Nawabshah (Sindh) as Deputy Commissioner. During the struggle for independence, he played a historical role in bringing Mohammad Ali Jinnah to Quetta and eventually persuading the tribal heads and people of Baluchistan to join with Pakistan. In 1947, At the time of partition, M. Masud opted for Pakistan and continued at the same posting in Nawabshah.
In March 1947, upon the insistence of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, a committee was formed to look into the suffering and inhuman conditions of the Sindhi hari peasants and M. Masud was nominated as a member of this newly formed Hari Inquiry Committee. The controversial report produced by this committee in January 1948, prompted him to write his highly acclaimed Note of Dissent to the Hari Report which was presented to the Government in June 1949, but was never made public by the government. Soon afterwards, Masud launched his struggle for land for the landless and earned himself the name of Masud Hari.
In 1957, M. Masud made a place for himself in the history of Pakistan, as the only man ever, to have the courage of his conviction to lead the namaz (prayers) publicly in Urdu, in Lawrence Gardens, Lahore. It was his firm belief, that the only way to effectively communicate with God, was in ones own mother tongue. As a result of death threats, by religious leaders, the Government was forced to send him abroad, alongwith his family.
In 1960, during General Ayub Khan's tenure, Masud once again took on the Government, putting his career at risk to write his strong and candid dissenting note, on the Indus Basin Treaty, strongly condemning the sale of our rivers to India.
In 1962 Masud started the first Punjabi monthly magazine "Haq Allah" from Karachi. Unfortunately due to financial constraints and a lack Punjabi readership, it ceased publication after two years.
In 1965 M. Masud was invited by the Government of Peoples Republic of China to visit their country. The purpose of his visit to China was to study the commune system in the rural sector and the industrial development in the urban areas. During his stay in China, M. Masud visited the entire east coast of the country from north to south. His two hour meeting with Premier Chou En Lai, left a lasting impression on his mind.
In 1992, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan gave a posthumous award to M. Masud, for services towards humanity. He was the founder member of movements such as Group 83, Punjab Forum and Tehrik-e-Khushal Pakistan.
Throughout his Civil Service career, Masud wore his national dress made from handloom khaddar cloth woven in the villages of rural Punjab, as an encouragement and respect for the weavers of this dying skill and to be identified as an ordinary human being, regardless of his status as a Civil Servant. Masud today, is most well known as Masud Khaddarposh a name, which sets him apart from the rest.
Government policies, alongwith the general public's overall apathy for their mother tongue, drove the symbolic nails into the coffin of Punjabi language. This future vision of Punjabi's funeral prompted Masud to leave behind an organization able to carry on his life long struggle for the survival, acceptance and promotion of Punjabi.
Masud was the greatest exponent of medium of instruction in the mother tongue and relentlessly pursued this cause throughout his life. He started work on the formation of the Masud Khaddarposh Trust (MKT) but unfortunately, his sudden death in December 1985 did not allow him to see his work completed. Nonetheless, in accordance with his wishes, family members completed the formalities and MKT was established. Its first awards ceremony was held in December 1986.
Masud Bhagwan, Masud Hari, Masud Khaddarposh - true son of the soil, human rights activist and a staunch patriot.

The Ramon Magsaysay Awardees from Pakistan

2006-04-09T17:03:00.000-07:00

The RMAF recognizes and honors individuals and organizations in Asia regardless of race, creed, sex, or nationality, who have achieved distinction in their respective fields and have helped others generously without anticipating public recognition. The awards are given in five categories: government service; public service; community leadership; journalism, literature, and creative communication arts; peace and international understanding.

Name or Company
Name of Organization Year Awarded Category
Edhi, Abdul Sattar 1986 PS
Edhi, Bilqis 1986 PS
Holland, Ronald 1960 PS
Holland, Henry 1960 PS
Jahangir, Asma 1995 PS
Khan, Akhter 1963 GS
Khan, Shoaib 1992 CL
Pfau, Ruth 2002 PS
Rehman, Ibn Abdur 2004 PIU
Rizvi, Syed Adibul 1998 GS
Siddiqui, Tasneem Ahmed 1999 GS

Dr. AQ Khan, Father of Pakistani Nuclear and Missile Programme

2006-04-09T16:37:00.000-07:00

Pakistan's nuclear weapons program is a source of extreme national pride, and, as its father, A.Q. Khan -- who headed Pakistan's nuclear program for some 25 years -- is considered a national hero. Though his full name is Abdul Qadeer Khan, he is commonly referred to as A.Q. Khan. Born in Bhopal, Dr. A.Q. Khan is a German-educated metallurgist who, from May 1972 to December1975 was employed by Physics Dynamic Research Laboratory (also known as FDO), an engineering firm based in Amsterdam and a subcontractor to the URENCO consortium specializing in the manufacture of nuclear equipment. A Dutch-German and British consortium, Urenco primary enrichment facility was at Almelo, Netherlands. A.Q. Khan, in his capacity would eventualy have an office at that facility by late 1974.
In 1975, following India's 1974 nuclear test and while on holiday in Pakistan, Dr. was reported to have been asked by the then-prime minister to take charge of Pakistan’s uranium-enrichment program. In early 1976, Dr. Khan left the Netherlands with secret URENCO blueprints for uranium centrifuge (one of Dutch origins featuring an aluminum rotor, and another of German make, composed of maraging steel, a superhard alloy). Convicted in 1983 in abstentia by a court in the Netherlands for stealing the designs, his conviction would be later overturned on a technicality.
Because Pakistan lacked the technical base to for a nuclear program, Khan reportedly began to clandestinely acquire the necessary materials and components required for the production of fissile material using information pertaining to URENCO's key suppliers, which he had also taken with him from the Netherlands. Theses were used to provide Pakistan with needed equipment. Indeed, according to a Dutch government report, two Dutch firms were involved in the 1976 export of 6,200 unfinished maraging steel rotor tubes to Pakistan. A dual track approach was reportedly used for Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program, however, with Khan’s program being the reportedly inferior one, as far as size, power and efficiency characteristics were concerned. Pakistan’s Atomic Energy Commission ran the other track. There have however been a number of allegations regarding Pakistan’s nuclear weapon that its origins may lie with China, as Pakistan’s bombs closely mirror Chinese designs from the late 1960’s, and which relied on advanced, implosion-based detonation.
A.Q. Khan initially worked under Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), headed by Munir Ahmad Khan, for a short period. But the pair fell out, and in July 1976, Bhutto gave A.Q. Khan autonomous control of the uranium enrichment project, reporting directly to the prime minister's office, which arrangement has continued since. A.Q. Khan founded the Engineering Research Laboratories (ERL) on 31 July 1976, with the exclusive task of indigenous development of Uranium Enrichment Plant. Within the next five years the target would be achieved.
On 01 May 1981, ERL was renamed by Gen. Mohammad Zia ul-Haq as Dr. A.Q. Khan Research Laboratories (KRL). It was enrichment of Uranium in KRL that ultimately led to the successful detonation of Pakistan's first nuclear device on 28 May 1998.
During the 1990s, there were intermittent clues from intelligence that AQ Khan was discussing the sale of nuclear technology to countries of concern. By early 2000, intelligence revealed that these were not isolated incidents. It became clear that Khan was at the centre of an international proliferation network. By April 2000, the UK Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) was noting that there was an evolving, and as yet incomplete, picture of the supply of uranium enrichment equipment to at least one customer in the Middle East, thought to be Libya, and evidence linking this activity to Khan.
A.Q. Khan's official career came to an abrupt end in March 2001, when he was suddenly was forced out as director of the nuclear lab by order of President Pervez Musharraf. Though Kahn was made a special adviser to the government, the reason for his dismissal reportedly coincided with concerns about financial improprieties at the lab as well as general warnings from the United States to the Musharraf about Khan’s proliferation activities. Musharraf's restraint in dealing with A.Q. Khan has been said to have resulted from the lack of incontrovertible evidence of proliferation activities. Nonetheless, Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, in an article which appeared in the Financial Times on 01 June 2001, expressed concern that, "people who were employed by the nuclear agency and have retired" may be assisting North Korea with its nuclear program.
The change in position for A.Q. Khan did not necessarily end proliferation concerns. Indeed, while in Pakistan in October 2003, a US delegation led by Deputy Secretary of State Richard L. Armitage reportedly briefed Gen. Musharraf on A.Q. Khan activities. Gen. Abizaid, then head of US Central Command, repotedly conducted similar concerns to Pakistani political and military leaders.
With the international inspections of Iran's nuclear operations and the October 2003 interception of a ship headed for Libya and carrying centrifuge parts, Pakistan began seriously investigating A.Q. Khan. The United Nation's International Atomic Energy Agency in November 2003 itself warned Pakistan of possible nuclear leaks. After two months of investigations, in late January 2004 Pakistani officials concluded that two of the country's most senior nuclear scientists had black market contacts that supplied sensitive technology to Iran and Libya. Pakistani intelligence officials said the scientists - A.Q. Khan and Mohammed Farooq - provided the help both directly and through a black market based in the Persian Gulf emirate of Dubai. Dr. Khan and Dr. Farooq were longtime colleagues at A.Q. Khan Research Laboratories. President Musharraf acknowledged that some scientists may have acted for their own personal gain, but he denied any government involvement and pledged harsh punishment for any person implicated in the scandal.
The lack of of strict oversight over Pakistan's nuclear weapons program has been blamed with a brigadier general in charge of security for Dr. Khan's top-secret laboratory never having reported anything. Doubts remain, however, about the lack of governmental approval/supervision of A.Q. Kahn's proliferation activities; some of which were conspicuously advertised. Indeed, one of A.Q. Khan Research Laboratories' sales brochure promoted the sale of components derived from Pakistan's nuclear weapons program and critical to the making of centrifuges. The Pakistani government istelf published in 2000 an advertisement regarding procedures to be followed for the exports of nuclear material according to a Congressional Research Service report dated May 2003. Moreover, Khan and colleagues of his had published numerous scientific papers internationally on the making and testing of uranium centrifuges, including one dated from 1991 which detailed the methodology to be followed in ecthing grooves on the bottom of a centrifuge to aid the flow of lubricants and thus aid in the centrifuge's spinning speed.
Some questions have been raised over the idea that even someone as prominent as Khan could have delivered such sensitive material without approval from higher authorities, and that at the very least the leadership of Pakistan's military and intelligence establishment must have sanctioned the transfers. The extent of previous Pakistani civilian governments' involvement is unclear, even if the military knew and approved the transfers. This is partly a result of the distrust by the army of civilian politicians. Such was the case with former Prime Ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif.
Many Pakistanis have felt that President Pervez Musharraf succumbed to US pressure in moving against A.Q. Khan, the latter's stature as a national hero. However, given the scope of the problem and the fact taht the three intended recipients of nuclear transfers are on the list of countries the United States is most anxious to keep away from weapons of mass destruction, Musharraf may not have had a choice other than act on A.Q. Khan. Still, the government of Pakistan is likely not to be eager to give the United States any more information than it has to as to the whereabouts and/or security arrangements of its nuclear arsenal.
In his startling televised confession Wednesday, Abdul Qadeer Khan insisted he acted without authorization in selling nuclear technology to other governments. A.Q. Khan admitted selling nuclear technology to Iran, Libya, and North Korea. A.Q. Khan asked for clemency, but the Pakistani government made no public announcement about whether he is to be prosecuted. The confessed proliferation took place between 1989 and 2000, though it is suspected that proliferation activities to North Korea continued after that date. The network used to supply these activities is global in scope, stretching from Germany to Dubai and from China to South Asia, and involves numerous middlemen and suppliers.

Nobel Laureate Professor Salam proudly dressed in a dastaar and traditional Punjabi attire, at the 1979 Nobel Prize ceremony in Oslo

2006-04-09T16:06:00.000-07:00

Abdus Salam was born in Jhang, a small town in what is now Pakistan, in 1926. His father was an official in the Department of Education in a poor farming district. His family has a long tradition of piety and learning.
The Les Prix Nobel, a publication containing the biographies of Nobel Laureates, provides the following information on Professor Salam:
"When he cycled home from Lahore, at the age of 14, after gaining the highest marks ever recorded for the Matriculation Examination at the University of the Punjab, the whole town turned out to welcome him. He won a scholarship to Government College, University of the Punjab, and took his MA in 1946. In the same year he was awarded a scholarship to St. John's College, Cambridge, where he took a BA (honours) with a double First in mathematics and physics in 1949. In 1950 he received the Smith's Prize from Cambridge University for the most outstanding pre-doctoral contribution to physics. He also obtained a PhD in theoretical physics at Cambridge; his thesis, published in 1951, contained fundamental work in quantum electrodynamics which had already gained him an international reputation."
"Salam returned to Pakistan in 1951 to teach mathematics at Government College, Lahore, and in 1952 became head of the Mathematics Department of the Punjab University. He had come back with the intention of founding a school of research, but it soon became clear that this was impossible. To pursue a career of research in theoretical physics he had no alternative at that time but to leave his own country and work abroad. Many years later he succeeded in finding a way to solve the heartbreaking dilemma faced by many young and gifted theoretical physicists from developing countries. At the ICTP, Trieste, which he created, he instituted the famous "Associateships" which allowed deserving young physicists to spend their vacations there in an invigorating atmosphere, in close touch with their peers in research and with the leaders in their own field, losing their sense of isolation and returning to their own country for nine months of the academic year refreshed and recharged."
The International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy, was undoubtedly one of Professor Salam's greatest legacies. "His dreams came true here," says Saif. "This was the culmination of his vision for developing science and allowed gifted scientists from the Third World to interact with top scientists from advanced nations, without having to forsake their native countries."
Since 1957 he has been Professor of Theoretical Physics at Imperial College, London, and since 1964 has combined this position with that of Director of the ICTP, Trieste.For more than forty years he has been a prolific researcher in theoretical elementary particle physics. He has either pioneered or been associated with all the important developments in this field, maintaining a constant and fertile flow of brilliant ideas. For the past thirty years he has used his academic reputation to add weight to his active and influential participation in international scientific affairs. He has served on a number of United Nations committees concerned with the advancement of science and technology in developing countries.To accommodate the astonishing volume of activity that he undertakes, Professor Salam cuts out such inessentials as holidays, parties and entertainments. Faced with such an example, the staff of the Centre find it very difficult to complain that they are overworked.He has a way of keeping his administrative staff at the ICTP fully alive to the real aim of the Centre - the fostering through training and research of the advancement of theoretical physics, with special regard to the needs of developing countries. Inspired by their personal regard for him and encouraged by the fact that he works harder than any of them, the staff cheerfully submit to working conditions that would be unthinkable here at the (International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna (IAEA). The money he received from the Atoms for Peace Medal and Award he spent on setting up a fund for young Pakistani physicists to visit the ICTP. He uses his share of the Nobel Prize entirely for the benefit of physicists from developing countries and does not spend a penny of it on himself or his family.
Professor Salam's achievements established him as an integral part of the international scientific community. He became renowned as an ambassador of science, and perhaps more importantly, a humanitarian who sought to bring people together as opposed to dividing them. He was also a staunch advocate of scientific awareness and development in Third World countries as a fundamental basis for socio-economic progression.
"Our discipline of Physics is an extremely rich discipline. It not only provides us with the understanding of the basic laws of nature, it also is the basis of most of modern high technology. This remark is relevant to our developing countries," commented Professor Salam in a 1986 lecture at the ICTP in Trieste. "One may note that because of this connection with high technology and materials' exploitation, physics is the 'science of wealth creation' par excellence. This is even in contrast to chemistry and biology which - though as important for development - are 'survival sciences'. This is in the sense that chemistry and medical sciences provide the survival basis of food production as well as of pharmaceutical expertise. Physics takes over at the next level of sophistication. If a nation wants to become wealthy, it must acquire a high degree of expertise in physics, both pure and applied."
Despite his quest to educate law-makers, in developing nations, about the critical role that science would play in their economic advancement, Professor Salam acknowledged it was no easy task. In a 1981 interview with Denzil Peiris, the Professor responded to the question of why a lack of interest in science and technology exists in the Third World.
"The older I grow the more I feel amazed at the blindness of the developing world towards these really fundamental issues," replied the Professor. "This is a very difficult matter. You see I don't know how you can create, at a certain time, a class of men (of administrators interested in science) and let them have their head. It may happen by accident. For example take this country [Great Britain] in the last century. How did it consciously or unconsciously create the empire? There were men here who were motivated. But why? Whenever I visit the gaunt landscape of our Northern Frontier (of Pakistan), the thought comes to me: There used to be one Englishman in this whole division and he had the guts to say, 'Here, I am the ruler.' What was impelling these men and where have they gone now? The same thing is true for science and technology. Either you get men who acquire science and technology, and apply it in the service of society or you don't. I can see some countries are coming up in this respect."
"In the country of his birth and citizenship, no scientific or other institution, building, or even a street, bears his name. School text books do not mention him, nor are children told about him by their teachers. Fake heroes are spattered all over the place but Salam is never to be found. Reflecting the disdain felt by much of Pakistani academia, a former vice-chancellor of my university scornfully asked in a meeting: 'Who is Salam? What has he done for Pakistan?'" observed Pervez Hoodbhoy, of the Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad, at the 1997 Commemoration Day Tribute to Professor Salam at the ICTP.
When Professor Salam ran for the post of Director General of UNESCO, he needed an endorsement from his country of citizenship. "Pakistan refused to endorse his candidacy," says Saif. "He was awarded an O.B.E. by the Queen of England and had lived in England long enough to get citizenship there, but he didn't want it; the Italian government, because of his work at the ICTP, were also offering him citizenship, but, again, he never accepted it (even after Pakistan refused to endorse him)."
The situation didn't end with a lack of endorsement from the government; propoganda within Pakistan began to emerge saying that Professor Salam was working as a spy for the Indians. Certain people in government were mad he didn't want to have anything to do with the construction of a nuclear weapon. The truth is that it went against everything he stood for and believed in. His concept of science was using it to uplift mankind - and not the other way around. It even went against his name, which in Arabic means 'Servant of Peace'."
Further reasons for the hostility directed towards Professor Salam in his own country, may be found in Professor Hoodbhoy's speech on November 21, 1997 at Trieste:
"Before 1974, Salam was legally a Muslim in Pakistan, but subsequently he became a non-Muslim in a state where non-Muslims are, by law, second class citizens. Subsequent to his excommunication by an act of the Pakistani national parliament, and of his Ahmadiyya sect, Salam resigned as Adviser to the President. Although he maintained contacts with the government, scientific institutions, and individuals, in effect he ceased to exercise significant authority," explains Hoodbhoy.
"Salam never accepted this excommunication," continues Hoodbhoy. "Subsequently (I think), he developed an intense pride in his heritage and did what no one else - Muslim or other - had done. From dry and dusty history books he rescued the scientific and intellectual achievements of Muslim intellectual giants of a thousand years ago and turned them into symbols of cultural pride. The crucially important thing is that he emphasized these achievements as belonging to the realm of the rational. Salam's purpose was to rekindle a sense of pride and hope amongst those who had long lost both. He did succeed, but the victory was partial and temporary. No mortal can fight the forces of history, especially when they are orientated towards the past rather than the future."
Professor Hoodbhoy goes back to Professor Salam's excommunication of 1974 and looks at the issue from a historical perspective:
"Certainly, the doctrinal differences between Ahmadiyyas and mainstream Muslims are not of the slightest concern to us here - they are just as arcane and impossible to resolve as the differences between, say, Catholics or Protestants or Anabaptists or Calvinists. It is usual, as in the Middle Ages of Europe, for theological disputes to be resolved by the use of force with the weaker side being exterminated or terrorized into fleeing. This is the legacy that every religion has left to mankind. To prevent the majority from slaughtering the minority was precisely the historical reason for the emergence of secularism in Europe. Tragically, the Pakistani state moved the other way and became a party to a theological dispute which had simmered for many years. As it turned out, 1974 was the first step down the slippery slope, the bottom of which is not yet in sight. More and more sects and communities are facing the threat of persecution and possible excommunication as the fires of religious extremism burn even higher."
Abdus Salam died on November 21, 1996.

Faqir Khana Museum

2006-04-08T23:52:00.000-07:00

With over 30,000 antiques of the Faqir Family Faqir Khana owns one the largest private antiques collection in South Asia. This collection has been passing to several generations and boast’s around 30,000 antique pieces from British, Sikh & Mughal era, For the first time in Pakistan Faqir Sayyed Iftikhar uddin (Faqir Khana museum co-coordinator & Associate member of the Faqir Khana trust) has taken up the challenge to bring it up as the first e-museum not only in Pakistan but also in the whole of South East Asia. Your involvement and interest can help the faqir khana e museum team bridge the gap between heritage and technology. The Museum site has 13 different categories of antiques which include: Chinese pottery, Chinese paintings, Ghandhara, coins, Miniatures/paintings, weapons etc. http://www.fakirkhana.com/message1.html

Nankana Sahib: Shrine of Guru Nanak

2006-04-08T23:40:00.000-07:00

Gurdwara Nankana Sahib is highly revered as it is the birth place of Guru Nanak. The city named Nankana Sahib came up around the Gurdwara in Sheikhupura, Pakistan. The town has nine gurdwaras including the Gurdwara Janam Asthan which marks the birth place of Guru Nanak Dev. Each of the gurdwaras is related with important events in Guru Nanak's life. Annually some 25,000 Sikh pilgrims visit the town with about 15,000 gathering during the peak season around the birthday celebrations of Guru Nanak.

Prophet of the Punjab: Baba Guru Nanak Devji

2006-04-08T23:30:00.000-07:00

Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji was born in 1469 in a village named Talwandi in the Sheikhupura district, 65 kms west of Lahore(now in Pakistan). He was an exponent of bringing monotheistic traditions to Hinduism, and removing the bane of the hindu caste system.
His father's name was Mehta Kalu and his mother's name was Tripta. His birth was blessed by a Muslim saint Baba Naulakh Hazari. His father Mehta Kalu who was a 'Patwari' (manager). He was married to Sulakhani and eventually had two sons Sri Chand and Lakshmi Chand.
At his birth, the mid-wife Daultan experienced an extraordinary happening. She felt that suddenly the room was filled with a bright light just before his birth. As a boy, Sri Guru Nanak learnt, besides the regional languages, Persian and Arabic.
By all accounts, 1496 was the year of his enlightenment when he started on his mission. Accompanied by Mardana, he began his missionary tours. Apart from conveying his message and rendering help to the weak, he preached to partaway against caste distinctions, idol worship and the pseudo-religious beliefs that had no spiritual content.

SAPTA SANDHU:Zoroastrians in Punjab

2006-04-08T23:23:00.000-07:00

1: Sassanian clibanarius, 7th C. AD2: Sassanian standard bearer
Under Shahpour I's brilliant leadership the Sassanian army gave much of its attention to winning back the cities of Syria that had fallen to Rome during the Parthian Era.
Sassanian forces were described by Ammianus Marcellinus, a 4th century historian with the Roman Army as ".. clad in iron, with all parts of their body covered, including their heads."
Shahpour's campaigns culminated in the capture of Valerian the Roman Emperor in AD 259 at Edessa defeating a force of 70,000.
Upon his return from the Syrian campaign, Shahpour set building himself a city known as Bishapur (the beautiful city of shahpour). Roman Ghirshman the French archaeologist described it as the Sassanian Versailles believed to have had about 80000 inhabitants.

The Sassanians: considered themselves as heirs of the Achaemenids, revived old values and practices, in particular supremacy in world affairs. Ardeshir I initiated and Shahpour I consolidated a vast empire stretching from the Indian Punjab to the east of Capadocia in Anatolia.
Bahram II is reputed to have seized the Throne by political intrigues, led by the chief priest Kerdir and the nobles. Court intrigues and a series of military defeats weakened the sassanian position. It was Khosrow I ( Anoushirvan ) and also Khosrow II who revitalized the Empire. Khosrow II came close to achieving the Sassanian dream of restoring the Achaemenid boundaries when Jerusalem fell to him and constantinople was under his siege. The two Khosrows are well celebrated as great heroes in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh. Khosrow I was renowned for his military and diplomatic skills and is reputed as the "Just" Anoushirvan Adel. During his time the game of chess had been brought to his court from India, his chief minister Buzarjomehr is reputed to have invented backgammon. The splendour of Khosrow's palace at Cetesiphon ( Tag-i Kasra ) is legendary.

2006-04-08T22:51:00.001-07:00

This photo of the modern Jhelum river is a little further north in modern kashmir, but gives an impression of the terrain along the river bank.

Founder of the Indo-Greek Kingdom Demetrius I (205-171 BCE), wearing the scalp of an elephant, symbol of his conquest of India.

Conquests of Alexander The Great (327-326 BCE)
In 327 BCE Alexander the Great began his foray into Punjab. King Ambhi, ruler of Taxila, surrendered the city to Alexander. Many people had fled to a high fortress/rock called Aornos. Aornos was taken by Alexander by storm after a successful siege. Alexander fought an epic battle against the Indian monarch Porus in the Battle of Hydaspes (326). After victory, Alexander made an alliance with Porus and appointed him as satrap of his own kingdom. Alexander continued on to conquer all the headwaters of the Indus River.
East of Porus' kingdom, near the Ganges River, was the powerful kingdom of Magadha. Exhausted and frightened by the prospect of facing another giant Indian army at the Ganges River, his army mutinied at the Hyphasis (modern Beas), refusing to march further East. Alexander, after the meeting with his officer, Coenus, was convinced that it was better to return.
Alexander was forced to turn south, conquering his way down the Indus to the Indian Ocean. He sent much of his army to Carmania (modern southern Iran) with his general Craterus, and commissioned a fleet to explore the Persian Gulf shore under his admiral Nearchus, while he led the rest of his forces back to Persia by the southern route through the Gedrosia (modern Makran in southern Pakistan).

Coin of Sophytes (305-294 BCE)
Alexander left behind Greek forces which established themselves in the city of Taxila, now in Pakistan. Several generals governed the newly established province. One of them, Sophytes (305-294 BCE), was an independent Greek prince in the Punjab.
Within a few years local India monarchs recaptured the region from the Greeks. Chandragupta Maurya, who had met Alexander in Taxila, founded the Mauryan empire.
[edit]

Seleucid invasion (304 BCE)
Seleucus I Nicator founder of the Seleucid dynasty and one of Alexander's former generals. He invaded India (modern Punjab in northern India and Pakistan) in 304 BCE.
It is said that Chandragupta Marya put an army of 100,000 men and 9,000 war elephants and forced Seleucus to conclude an alliance. Seleucus gave him his daughter in marriage, ceded the territories of Arachosia, and received from Chandraguta 500 war elephant which he used decisively at the Battle of Ipsus.
Seleucus also sent an ambassador named Megasthenes to Chandragupta's court, who repeatedly visited Pataliputra (modern Patna in Bihar state), capital of Chandragupta. Megasthenes has written detailed descriptions of India and Chandragupta's reign.
Continued diplomatic exchanges and good relations are between the Seleucids and the Mauryan empirors are then documented throughout the duration of the Mauryan empire.
[edit]

Indo-Greek rule (180-30 BCE)

The founder of the Indo-Greek Kingdom Demetrius I (205-171 BCE), wearing the scalp of an elephant, symbol of his conquest of India.
In 180 BCE, the Indo-Greeks, invaded parts of northwest and northern India. They are an extension of the Greco-Bactrian dynasty of Greek kings (the Euthydemids) located in neighbouring Bactria.
The invasion of northern India followed the destruction of the Mauryan dynasty by the general Pusyamitra Sunga, who then founded the new Indian Sunga dynasty (185 BCE-78 BCE). The Indo-Greek king Demetrius I of Bactria went as far as the capital Pataliputra in eastern India (today Patna): "Those who came after Alexander went to the Ganges and Pataliputra" (Strabo, XV.698). The Indian records also describes Greek attacks on Saketa, Panchala, Mathura and Pataliputra (Gargi-Samhita, Yuga Purana chapter).
The Indo-Greeks ruled various part of northern and northwestern India until the end of the 1st century BC, while the Sungas remained in the east.
[edit]

Legacy
Buddhism flourished under the Indo-Greeks, leading to the Greco-Buddhist cultural syncretism. The arts of the Indian sub-continent were also quite affected by Hellenistic art during and after these interactions.
The Hunza tribe in the Pakistani part of Kashmir is said to have descended from Greek generals based there.

Porus (Old Indian Puru): king in the eastern Punjab, defeated in 326 BCE by Alexander the Great.
The Greek/Latin name Porus is a rendering of the Indian Puru, the throne name of the ruler of the kingdom Paurava. This state was situated between the rivers Hydaspes (modern Jhelum) and Acesines (Chenab). Its capital may have been at the site now known as Lahore.
When the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great arrived in India in the spring of 326, he was welcomed by Omphis, the king of Taxila (Takshaçila, near modern Rawalpindi), another kingdom in the Punjab and Porus' archenemy. To Porus, the arrival of the westerners was a great threat: after all, it was obvious that Omphis would use his allies in a war against Paurava.
However, for the time being, he seemed safe, because the approaching monsoon rains would make it impossible to cross the Hydaspes. Therefore, he refused to send envoys to Taxila to offer tokens of submission. This was a grave error, because Alexander wanted to conquer all of India. In May, the Macedonian army started to march to the Hydaspes.

The Hydaspes battefield?
Porus was prepared for war. With his army, he had taken up a position on the east bank, intending to prevent Alexander's crossing. A bit more to the north, one of his sons was guarding the river, to make sure that Alexander would not outflank the Pauravans. As it turned out, Porus' son was no match for the Macedonians: during a thunderstorm, they crossed the Hydaspes, and the Indian chariots were unable to move through the rain-soaked mud. He was defeated and killed, and Alexander started to move against the army of his father.
The battle at the Hydaspes (©**)
The Indians were outnumbered and outclassed by the Macedonian army. However, Porus still had one dangerous weapon: the elephants, an army unit that the Macedonians had never encountered before. He placed these animals before his infantry men, knowing that the Macedonian cavalry could not attack them because horses fear elephants unless they have had a special training. On his wings, the Pauravan king stationed his chariots. When the Macedonians reached the place where he was waiting for them, they deployed their phalanx and moved slowly towards their enemy. Alexander commanded the heavy cavalry and the mounted archers of the Dahae, which were on his right wing.

Porus saw that his left wing chariots were outnumbered by the Macedonian cavalry and moved his right wing chariots to the left; at that moment, the Macedonian cavalry commander Coenus suddenly moved to the now undefended Indian right wing and encircled the enemy lines, attacking them in their rear. Meanwhile, the heavy cavalry in Alexander's neighborhood and the Dahae were victorious against Porus' chariots, and archers were attacking the elephants. The Macedonian archers and phalanx started to kill the elephants' drivers and the animals panicked. From this moment on, the Indians were attacked from all sides: they had to defend themselves against the phalanx and their own elephants in front of them and the Macedonian cavalry in the rear. Nearly all Indian cavalry were killed; a few infantry men managed to flee; a wounded king Porus surrendered only after the destruction of his entire army. When Alexander asked him how he wanted to be treated, he gave the famous reply 'as a king'.
Porus had behaved like a king indeed and Alexander could appreciate this. The Indian leader accepted his defeat and was reappointed as satrap of his own kingdom. Omphis of Taxila must have been disappointed that he was forced to reconcile with his enemy; after all, he had invited Alexander to fight against his eastern neighbor. He had to accept an even more humiliating fact: Porus received additional territories to the north of his kingdom.
However, not all Indians accepted that they were now subjects of the westerner. A relative of Porus declared himself king of Paurava (and was consequently also called Porus) and continued the struggle in the eastern part of the country. When Alexander's army started to march against him, he fled, probably to the kingdom of Magadha in the Ganges valley.
Alexander intended to conquer Magadha, but his men refused to go any further (text), and the Macedonian king announced the return. This meant that Porus was to be the leader of a border satrapy, an exceptionally important function.
Three years later, when Alexander was dead and the territories were divided by his successor Perdiccas, Porus was recognized as defender of the eastern border (text), under the supervision of the satrap Peithon of the Punjab. He was still in function when the satrapies were divided for the second time after the death of Perdiccas (the settlement at Triparadisus).
In 317, one of Alexander's successors, Peithon the satrap of Media (not to be confused with the former Peithon), tried to subdue the leaders of the eastern provinces. The other satraps united and offered resistance. One of them was Eudamus, the commander of the Macedonian forces in Taxila. In order to procure Porus' elephants, he had him murdered.
After the removal of a loyal ruler and his troops, it became possible for the king of Magadha, Sandracottus (Chandragupta Maurya), to conquer the Indus valley. This meant the end of the Macedonian empire in the east, less than ten years after the invasion.
In the 1960, an Indian scholar named Buddha Prakash argued, basing himself on the famous medieval epic named Shahnameh by the Persian poet Firdausi, that Alexander was defeated' by Porus, that the two men became friends, and that this explained why Alexander left him so much territories. This theory, which has been revived in Pakistan in the 1990's, can not be accepted as serious scholarship, but Prakash was right to stress that Porus, who had suffered a terrible tactical defeat, was in the long term the real victor.

The founder of the Indo-Greek Kingdom Demetrius I (205-171 BCE), wearing the scalp of an elephant, symbol of his conquest of India.

2006-04-08T22:51:00.000-07:00

The founder of the Indo-Greek Kingdom Demetrius I (205-171 BCE), wearing the scalp of an elephant, symbol of his conquest of India.

Bulleh Shah (1680-1758), the "Maulana Rumi" of Punjab

2006-04-08T22:35:00.000-07:00

He belonged to a Syed family and was born in 1680, in a small village, Uch Gilania, in Bahawalpur. His father's name was Sain Mohammad Darvesh and his own real name was Abdullah. When he was six years old, his family moved to Kasur where he got his formal education from Maulvi Ghulam Murtaza, who was the Imam of the main mosque in Kasur. For a while after completing his education, Bulleh Shah taught at the same mosque. He then became a murid of Inayat Shah Qadri, a famous saint of Qadirya school of sufis in Lahore, who belonged to the Arain caste. Bulleh Shah had to face the resentment and taunts of his family and other Syed friends for accepting the spiritual guidance of a non-Syed. The poetic response from Bulleh Shah rejected his critics' false concept of inherent superiority and nobility of any caste and set the pattern of his lifelong challenge to accepted norms:

Those who call me Syed Are destined to hell made for them. Those who call me Arain Have the swings of heaven laid for them. The low-caste and the high-caste, Are created by God who is all-powerful; He casts away the fair ones, And clasps to His heart the meritless ones. In 1729 when Shah Inayat died, Bulleh Shah succeeded him as the head of his monastery at Lahore. Bulleh Shah died in 1758. He never married. Even with the recent upsurge in Bulleh Shah scholarship, credible critical works highlighting some of the most important aspects of his poetry are lacking. The initial scholarship was focused on collecting, editing and authentication of the earlier written records and folk memory of his poetry. Critical appreciation of his poetry has not yet gone beyond expositions of its religious aspects. Bulleh Shah's poetry can be divided into three broadly distinct periods reflecting the progression of his thoughts throughout his life. In the first period, the love and devotion of his murshid is the main theme. A minor turbulence in this relationship would cause a great anguish for him and the poetry of this early period reflects the whole vista of emotions from unbearable pain and dejection to the extremes of delight and exuberance:

Your love has made me dance to a fast beat! Your love has taken abode within my heart! This cup of poison I drank all by myself. Come, come, O physician, or else I breathe my last! Your love has made me dance to a fast beat! In the second phase, poetic expressions of Bulleh Shah's mystic experience are prominent:

You alone exist; I do not, O Beloved! You alone exist, I do not!
Like the shadow of a house in ruins, I revolve in my own mind. If I speak, you speak with me: If I am silent, you are in my mind. If I sleep, you sleep with me: If I walk, you are along my path. Oh Bulleh, the spouse has come to my house: My life is a sacrifice unto Him. You alone exist; I do not, O Beloved! Most of Bulleh Shah's critics tend to focus on the first two phases of his poetry. Generally, the writings on Bulleh Shah are little more than explanations of the mystic content of his poetry in the context of different sufi schools of thought. Some of his more enlightened, progressive and humanist compositions are said to be written under the influence of Bhagti ideas. His poetry is considered to be mainly concerned with the eternal life. This ignores the fact that the most significant part of Bulleh Shah's poetry is his fierce denunciation of all forms of oppression, especially the oppression of freedom of thought and other obstacles towards peaceful human coexistence. It is this third phase of Bulleh Shah's poetry, apparently written after reaching the heights of his spiritual quest and gaining a unique wisdom and insight into human affairs, that has made him one of the most popular Punjabi poets. He advocated the pre-eminence of truth, love, and compassion over religious scholarship, external formalities and blind faith. His outright rejection of any formal authority of religious institutions in regulating the affairs of society, in particular the role of the mullahs and religious scholars, became the subject of many of his famous poems. He sharply criticized the rigid beliefs and intolerance of mullahs and preachers that in his opinion were the main source of communal hatred.

The mullah and the torch-bearer Hail from the same stock; They give light to others, And themselves are in the dark. He believed that human beings equally deserve the right to live a life of peace and dignity regardless of their colour, creed or status:

There is only one thread of all cotton. The warp, the woof, the quill of the weaver's shuttle, The shuttle, the texture of cloths, the cotton shoes and hanks of yarn, All are known by their respective names,And they all belong to their respective places But there is only one thread of yarn. Bulleh Shah never cared to mince words in his bold and courageous challenge to the forces of darkness of his time. He was a liberal and progressive thinker in the most modern sense. His outspoken and blunt style struck a chord with all segments of Punjabis who have kept his memory alive without the help of state institutions. He was the leading light of a rich sufi tradition of Punjabi poetry that for many centuries had spread the message of religious tolerance, communal harmony, liberalism, humanism and love. Set to the tunes of folk and classical music, compositions of Bulleh Shah and other Punjabi sufi poets are remarkable pieces of literary art that synthesize highly complex ideas, emotions and experiences in the homely and deceptively simple idioms and metaphors of rural Punjab. The intention is not just to charm but also engage and enlighten the hearts and minds of the audience. By all critical accounts, the classical Punjabi sufi poetry reached its pinnacle in Bulleh Shah. Loved by Punjabis of all faiths and creeds, Bulleh Shah is the undoubted "National Poet of all Punjabis" if such a title was ever considered to be politically correct.

PAKISTAN: good site

2006-04-08T22:30:00.000-07:00

http://www.heritage.gov.pk/View-JPG%20pics/landscape.html

Terraced Fields of Hunza Valley

2006-04-08T22:25:00.000-07:00

KASHMIR POINT MURREE

2006-04-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

PAKISTAN excellent link

2006-04-08T22:04:00.000-07:00

http://www.harappa.com/index.html

Murree, in the Punjaub, 1863

2006-04-08T21:58:00.000-07:00

Murree is one of many hillstations set up by the British in the Himalayan foothills during the 19th century. The best known is Simla, summer capital of the Raj. Murree, founded in 1851, is a smaller version of the classic hillstation. An Anglican Church, consecrated in May 1857, defines the center of town. Alongside runs the main road, the Mall. Across the Church are the most important commercial establishments, the Post Office, General Merchants with European goods, tailors and a millinery or hat store. Beneath the Mall run bazaars of descending economic consequence. Until 1947, access to the Mall was restricted for non-Europeans.
T oday, Murree is a thriving summer resort for the nearby capital of Pakistan, Islamabad. People from hundreds of miles to the south in Lahore, Multan and Karachi come to spend the summers here as well.
The hillstation was originally established at 7,000 feet for the British troops garrisoned on the Afghan frontier in Peshawar. In that hot and dusty cantonment, the mortality rate from cholera could approach twenty percent per year. Whole companies could be wiped out in weeks. In contrast, Murree must have been most attractive, as described in the Gazeteer of the Rawalpindi District, 1893-94:
"The sanitarium of Murree lies in north latitude 33 54' 30" and east longitude 73 26' 30", at an elevation of 7,517 feet above sea level, and contains a standing population of 1,768 inhabitants, which is, however, enormously increased during the season [May-November] by the influx of visitors and their attendant servants, and shopkeepers. It is the most accessible hillstation in the Punjab, being distant from Rawalpindi only a five hours' journey by tonga dak. Magnificent views are to be obtained in the spring and autumn of the snow crowned mountains of Kashmir; and gorgeous sunset and cloud effects seen daily during the rains [July-August]. Part of the station, especially the Kashmir end, are also well wooded and pretty."

Murree Hills

2006-04-08T21:52:00.000-07:00

http://www.tariq11.freeserve.co.uk/murree.html is a good site for Murree Hills.

Lake Saif ul Mulook

2006-04-08T21:44:00.000-07:00

Himalayan Foothills

2006-04-08T21:38:00.000-07:00

Kotli sattian