PUKHTOONS

the demand of azad pukhtoonistan

2008-07-06T12:02:00.001-07:00

it was the blunder of bacha khan who want to hide his blunder which
he did when he joined cangress ,when he was in prison,want to release
himself from the english govt prison,gave the oppurtunity to english
govt to divide pukhtoon, organizing muslim league in
pukhtoonkhawa.because the pukhtoon didnot want to join or made
alliance with hindues.th sayyeds ,pir mullah and british made khan
who were the agent of british govt avail this oppurtunity and said to
pukhtoon that bacha khan wanted to made you the slaves of hindus so
if you want independce from hindus than joined muslim league.thus
divide pukhtoons.the pukhtoonkhawa was never part of india ever
before .the british snatched this piece of land from afghanistan to
made it a plateform or jumping pad for their great game against
ussr.bach khan did this blunder and instead to gave sacrifice for
their mother land,not to participate in indian politics.and remain
their independent status.than the histiry of world will be
different.when he relize his blunder than he started struggle for
pukhtoonistan made pukhtoon more divided.
this is atime ,we raised voice of re unification of afghanistan and
pakistan because,because this land was one country before the arrival
of british to india

WALI KHAN PICTURES

2008-06-30T02:36:00.001-07:00

LAST ADRESS

ASSEMBLY HALL

JANAZA OF WALI KHAN
ADRESSING

The Political Future of Pukhtoons

2008-06-30T02:23:00.000-07:00

Pushtoon nation between Oxus and Indus is at a critical juncture of its history. Three decades of war in Afghanistan has literally devastated the infrastructure in Afghanistan and more than 3 million Afghans are living as refugees in neighboring Pakistan and Iran.

Due to the vital geo-strategic position of Afghanistan, the western powers under the leadership of US are there to safeguard their vested interests in central and south Asia.

The Pushtoons living in Pakistan are facing extreme exploitation of their water and mineral resources due to the indifferent and discriminatory policies of all those who belong to the echelons of power in Pakistan. They have been used against their fellow Afghan brothers in the name of religion and the morally unjustified loyalty to all the regimes who have been in power in Pakistan.

While all that has been earned from the water and mineral resources of Pashtoons have been going to the pockets of the beaureocracy in Islamabad, the extreme injustice is that despite of all these sacrifices at the alter of Pakistan, the Pushtoons have been projected as fanatic, backward and ignorant nation and Pakistan has left no stones unturned to keep them geographically, politically divided and economically poor nation.

The major chunk of Pushtoon nation can be categorized into two main groups due to the current geographical division: Pushtoons of Afghanistan and Pushtoons of Pakistan.

The Pushtoons of Afghanistan are divided into two factions:

1) The religiously active and Pakistan backed Taliban who are fighting against the US and NATO forces and trying to take over the reigns of power and striving to implement their version of Islam.

2) The nationalist Pushtoons more concerned rather skeptic about their as well as future of Afghanistan due to the political turmoil and instability caused by the fight between the Taliban and the foreign forces and also internal ethnic differences between Pushtoon and non Pushtoon population.

On the other hand the Pushtoons of Pakistan are divided into five geographical units:

3) The politically active but practically passive divided Pushtoons of Pakistan living in NWFP,FATA,Balochistan,Eastren Punjab and Karachi who are not only divided but also confused about their future due to the pro-Punjab cum Mahajir beaureocracy ,biased institutions and a dictated constitution.

In the current geo-political scenario when Pushtoons and their resources are being exploited they have two options for their existence and survival.

a) Evolutionary approach

b) Revolutionary approach

In evolutionary approach Pushtoons have to develop themselves in their current geographical territories whether they are in Afghanistan or in Pakistan while the revolutionary approach dictates that all Pushtoons should strive for a separate Pushtoon nation state based on the tenets of Islam.

BACHA KHAN PICTURES

2008-06-30T02:07:00.000-07:00

Asfand Yar Wali’s brother Sangeen Khan passes away

2008-06-26T14:24:00.000-07:00

LAHORE: The leader of Awami National Party Asfand Yar Wli’s brother Sangeen Khan Wali died after long ailment here on Thursday.

The departed soul suffered from cancer and had been admitted to hospital few days ago in a critical condition.

Funeral prayers would be said at 6 pm at his native city Charsadda wali bagh.

CONSPIRACY AGAINST PASHTUNS

2008-06-23T11:41:00.000-07:00

The despicable Charsadda terrorist bombing of the ANP election rally snuffed out precious 27 lives, leaving scores of others gored. Heavens know how many women the evil deed left widowed, how many children it orphaned and how many extended families it deprived of their lone breadwinner, as did an earlier contemptible suicide bombing of ex-Interior Minister’s election gathering in the area, which felled at least 53 innocent people and wounded many more. Instantly, the thuggish act was denounced by all and sundry, as was the earlier one, as indeed the various terrorist assaults elsewhere in the country in these times, as vile attempts to sabotage the upcoming poll and to destabilise the polity. Surely, these are, unquestionably and doubtlessly. But there is more to the wickedness of the terrorists in this part of the country than meets the eye. It, arguably, is part a deeper conspiracy to divide up the Pakhtuns and set them at one another’s throat. Of course, the entire land is in the vile sweep of these evil savages. They have been assaulting now civilian and military targets alike, lethally and fatally wherever and whenever they want; and in one deadly attack they brutally killed PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto and nearly three dozens of other innocents after her election rally in Rawalpindi. But the focal point of their thuggery is visibly the Pakhtun-dominated regions, especially in the NWFP where they have been not only slaughtering the innocent Pakhtuns with suicide assaults and remote-controlled bomb blasts but also blowing up their homes, schools, businesses and shops. Irrefutably, their sources of abetment, funding and arms lie outside the country, forming part of a grand conspiracy against the Pakhtuns, which is no lesser reflective from the painful reality that even as they themselves are the worst victims of terrorism they are being painted worldwide as terrorists. But the regret is that when the configuration of this conspiracy is so palpably evident there is no manifest realisation of it on the part of the Pakhtun leadership so as to put its act together to face up to this mischievous threat to their solidarity and cohesion . Instead, it remains embroiled in divisive squabbling and fracas. Political or miscellaneous differences come natural to a living community. A people sans diversity of views, thoughts and ideals are indeed a dud, stagnant and impotent community, which the Pakhtuns definitely are not. They are a people full of vigour, vitality and life. But a people with diversity but no unity among its ranks is a community on the way of decay, decadence and disintegration. This is the lesson of history, which the Pakhtun leadership across the spectrum should have imbibed zealously and voluminously but seems to have not at all. As the conspiracy to drive sharp wedges among the Pakhtuns and create unbridgeable schisms among them is blowing so furiously and so bloodily, this leadership shows up not even a slight sense of concern and unease. It keeps up with its own divisive ways puritanically. After the terrorist assault, the ANP has vowed not to deviate from Baacha Khan’s sublime principle of non-violence and to remain unflinchingly committed to peaceful struggle for attainment of its goals. This is good. Given the grave threat presently confronting the Pakhtuns to their solidarity and cohesion, this principle should now necessarily percolate down to all strands of Pakhtun political, intellectual and religious leadership. Had indeed this happened earlier, no outside powers would have dared to conspire against them and no natives would have ventured to become their agents. And the fanatics would have stood marginalised from their mainstream, not hogged the centre-stage as have they now, relegating even the religious leadership to coop up in safe havens for their own lives. If even now the Pakhtun leadership across the spectrum doesn’t create unity among its diversity, the community is surely in for more harrowing times. The unfolding conspiracy against the Pakhtuns is evidently very fierce, very ferocious and very vile; if this leadership doesn’t forestall it now, it will sweep the community, from one to all, to a destiny unknown but unmistakably grievous to all, without any exception. All must know this.

ABOUT PESHAWAR

2008-06-22T23:58:00.000-07:00

Peshawar derives its name from a Sanskrit word "Pushpapura" meaning the city of flowers. Peshawar’s flowers. Peshawar’s flowers were mentioned even in Moghal Emperor Babur's memoirs.

Alexander's legions and the southern wing of his army were held up here in 327 B.C. for forty days at a fort excavated recently, 27 1/2 kms (17 miles) north-east of Peshawar at Pushkalavati (lotus city) near Charsadda.

The great Babur marched through historic Khyber Pass to conquer South Asia in 1526 and set up the Moghal Empire in the lndo-Pakistan sub-continent.

The pass and the valley have resounded to the tramp of marching feet as successive armies hurtled down the crossroad of history, pathway of commerce, and migration arid invasion by Aryans. Scythians, Persians, Creeks.

Bactrians, Kushans. Huns. Turks' Mongols and Moghals.

And Peshawar is now, as always, very much a frontier town. The formalities of dress and manner give way here to a free and easy style, as men encounter men with a firm handclasp and a straight but friendly look. Hefty handsome men in baggy trousers arid long, loose shirts, wear bullet-studded bandoliers across their chests or pistols at their sides as a normal part of their dress.

There is just that little touch of excitement and drama in the air that makes for a frontier land. An occasional salvo of gun fire-no, not a tribal raid or a skirmish in the streets hut a lively part of wedding celebrations.

Remember we are in the land of the Pathans - a completely male -dominated society. North and south of Peshawar spreads the vast tribal area where lives the biggest tribal society in the world, and the most well-known, though much misrepresented, Pathans are faithful Muslims. Their heroes, like khushal Khan Khattak, the warrior-poet and Rebman Baba, have moulded their typical martial and religious character. A preacher and a poet of Pushto language.

Today, they themselves guard the Pakistan-Afghanistan border along the great passes of the Khyber. The Tochi, the Gomal and others on Pakistan's territory, but before independence they successfully defied mighty empires, like the British and the Moghal and others before them, keeping the border simmering with commotion, and the flame of freedom proudly burning.

Peshawar is the great Pathan city. And what a city! Hoary with age and the passage of twenty-five centuries, redolent with the smell of luscious fruit and roasted meat and tobacco smoke, placid and relaxed but pulsating with the rhythmic sound of craftsmen's hammers and horses' hooves, unhurried in its pedestrian pace and horse-carriage traffic, darkened with tall houses, narrow lanes and overhanging balconies, intimate, with its freely intermingling crowd of townsmen. Tribal, traders and tourists - this is old Peshawar the journey’s end or at least a long halt, for those traveling up north or coming down from the Middle East or Central Asia, now as centuries before when caravans unloaded in the many caravan ‘serais’ now lying deserted outside the dismantled city walls or used as garages by the modern caravans of far-ranging buses.

Political Autonomy for Pakhtuns

2008-06-22T08:12:00.000-07:00

Political autonomy is the first pre-requisite for the progress and development of a nation. If we trace back the reasons for the underdevelopment of a nation all of them converge to one root cause and that is - the lack of political autonomy.All imperialist,exploitative,dictatorial,authoritarian and fascist governments convince and even compel the masses to help themselves in health, security , education and other basic human rights which are infact the primary responsibilities of every government. On the contrary they leave no stone unturned to continue their never ending thirst for loot and plunder of the national resources.

In third world countries even religious beliefs like determinism are used to pacify and convince the masses to content themselves to their existing resources and avoid raising voice for their rights and share in the resources of the country.

The main technique used by authoritarian governments to deprive masses from their legitimate rights and divert their attention from the real issues to virtual issues is the good old principle of “divide and rule” .This technique is used in the following forms:

1) Encouraging religious clashes and sectarianism.

2) Using state controlled electronic and print media and ads-dependent private media for false propaganda.

3) Using state sponsored terrorism to suppress or kill all those voices which are raised against the usurpers.

4) Hijacking, terrorising and even killing the second level and in some cases top leadership of anti-government groups and parties.

5) Engaging the masses by creating confusion and disappointment.

The demands of a disorganized mob have always been helping status quo while an organised and systematic demand based on a vision has been fruitful in history. In case of Pakhtuns, their indifferent attitude towards national problems due to poverty and their victimization by the state have been the main reasons of diverting their attention, diverging their energies, delusioning their goal and diluting their efforts.

Thanks to the media which is projecting the state sponsored drama in the tribal areas by Pak forces and war against terror by US that Pakhtuns are identifying their internal and external enemies viz military establishment , civil bureaucracy , pro-establishment parties and the US.

Private electronic media has contributed a lot to the political consciousness of Pakhtuns so much so that Pakistan government had to close Pashto programs on the national television and shift the segment of Pashto programs to another government channel which is only available via satellite and hence not accessible by the majority of Pakhtun masses.

The detonation of bombs by secret agencies in Pukhtunkhwa to create law and order situation and execution of a well thought plan to make ISI-backed talibanisation phenomenon synonymous with Pakhtun nationalism is in progress. The target of this effort is to pave the way for the ethnic cleansing of Pakhtuns first in the Pakhtun land and then all over Pakistan specially in the native city of General Musharaff who is inclined politically to US and ethnically to MQM both of whom are anti-Pashtun forces.

All the efforts of Musharraf are being focused on Pakhtun areas as it serves both the purposes of US as well as MQM.At the same time maligning of Pakhtuns by projecting Pakhtuns as extremists, inclined to terrorism and hence justified to be killed by the “Pak” forces alone without getting help from the US forces is understandable in the given context.

The provincial autonomy bill which is infact a bitter pill both for the dictatorial regime as well as for establishment has suddenly disappeared from the political scenarion.The combined force of the opposition and the credibility of the major parties have already been damaged as a result of a well thought plan.

The only threat to the Musharraf regime is from the Judiciary which is being pressurized again by Musharraf’s ethnic party - MQM in Karachi and to which a warning signal in the form of violation of SC ruling was sent on 10th September 2007 by deporting Nawaz Sharif.

Pakhtuns are destined to suffer more in the future both at the hands of local as well as foreign enemies if they do not realize the gravity of situation and get rid of the optimistic self deceit they are deeply engrossed in for the last 60 years.

The most they are going to get from the heirs of colonial masters is a name for the current NWFP province and some portfolios for the seasonal, opportunist, firangee loyal, Muslim league type black sheep elements among the Pakhtun nation. Obviously this palliative treatment is not going to solve the problems of Pakhtun nation whose very survival is at stake in Pakistan. Therefore the national interest of Pakhtuns in Pakistan lies in finding an answer to the question of political autonomy.

In my opinion Pakhtuns of Pakistan have three options:

a) To become a part of Afghanistan.

b) To establish a separate Pukhtoon state.

c) To remain a part of Pakistan but subject to the following conditions:

1. New Name for Pashtun province comprising of NWFP, FATA, PATA, Attock, Mianwali and Pakhtun belt of Balochistan into a single Pakhtun Province to be called Pushtoonkhwa.

2. Provincial autonomy.

3. Share of water along with its net profit and due proportion in the revenue of tobacco.

4. Establishment of new industrial estates in Pakhtun land and stabilization of the old ones like Gadun Amazai, Jamrud and Hattar industrial estates.

5. Change of strategic depth policy by military Establishment to destabilize Afghanistan.

6. Compensation for the loss in Pakhtun land which Pakistani military has incurred in playing its role as an obedient servant to United States.

There are precedents set for all three options in history for example the unification of east and west Germany, founding of Bangla Desh and provincial (state) autonomy to states in USA and India .Which option shall we opt for is to be decided by the masses and intelligentsia of Pakhtun nation.

After having a consensus on a national agenda for taking any of the above cited options in the larger interest of Pakhtun nation, the public will of Pashtun masses and intellectual support of Pakhtun intelligentsia will combine. It will be easy for the leadership of Pakhtuns to lead the Pakhtun masses to achieve the goal.

The following elements in the society will be decisive in molding public opinion in order to achieve national targets.

1) Intellegstia like Voltaire and Rousseau for French revolution of 1789, Marx, Engels, Trotsky and Ludwig Fuerbach for Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 etc.

2) Electronic media TV channels, cellular tech, internet etc.

3) Print Media focused on national goals.

4) Professionals like lawyers, doctors, engineers, journalists, professors, teachers etc.

5) Nationalist Leadership

The Future of Pakhtuns

2008-06-22T08:11:00.001-07:00

Pakhtuns have resilient nature due to which they have passed the test of time and challenges of history and have survived as a nation. One of the reasons, why Pakhtuns have never been conquered in history is their resilient nature. These qualities of Pakhtuns have been inspiring them to fight for the right, resist foreign aggression and say no to dictation.

Pakhtuns have been role models against aggression and injustice for the nations of the world and history is a witness to this fact. The freedom struggle against the British rule in India, the defeat of the British in Afghanistan ,the defeat of Russian forces, the liberation of the current Azad Kashmir by Pakhtuns of Waziristan, the raising of voice against the massacre of Muslims in Indian Gujarat, refusal of Pakhtuns to say “Yes Sir” to the dictatorial regime of Musharaf ,raising voice against the massacre of innocent Pakhtuns by Pakistani agencies in Pakhtunkhwa and protest against the targeted killing of Pakhtuns by the terrorist network of MQM in Karachi are few examples from the recent past.

Despite of their glorious past, the Pakhtun nation between Oxus and Indus is at a critical juncture of its history.

Three decades of war has literally devastated the infrastructure in Afghanistan - the motherland of Pukhtoons. Pakistan is continuously trying to destabilize the elected government of Afghanistan using ISI – trained- Taliban within Afghanistan and aggravating the Pakhtuns living in Pakhtunkhwa against Afghan government by planting bombs in Pakhtunkhwa and putting the blame on Afghanistan. The religiously active and ISI-backed-Taliban in Afghanistan are fighting against the ISAF forces and trying to take over the reigns of power to implement their version of Islam which suits the vested interests of Pakistani establishment. On the contrary the common Pakhtuns in Afghanistan are suffering and are getting concerned about the future of Afghanistan due to the political turmoil and instability caused by the fight between the ISI-backed-Taliban and ISAF forces and also some internal ethnic differences between Pakhtun and non Pakhtun population.

Contrary to the fake and false statements of the so called officers of Pakistan Army, the agencies have been providing a safe haven to the terrorists of Al- Qaeeda in the cities of Punjab and Karachi while Mushharaf regime has been diverting the focus of the world community from sanctuaries of Al-Qaeeda terrorists in the cities of Punjab and Karachi and misleading the world community by pointing fingers to his political rivals - the Pakhtuns who have been refusing to accept his illegitimate regime. After the retrieval of top leaders of Al Qaeda in the past ,the world community including US should understand and get convinced that protecting Al-Qaeda in the cities of Punjab and Karachi is Pakistani strategy while Taliban despite of being involved in fight against ISAF in Afghanistan, is a multiethnic group having military experts from Pakistan Army and Intelligence agencies.

The politically active but practically passive divided Pakhtuns of Pakistan living in NWFP, FATA, Balochistan, Western Punjab (Attock and Mianwali) and Karachi are suffering economically as well as politically due to Pro-Punjab-Mahajir Civil and Military beoureocracy, biased institutions and a dictated constitution. The Pakhtuns of Pakhtunkhwa (NWFP, FATA and Pakhtun belt of Punjab and Balochistan) have been facing the indifferent and discriminatory policies of Pakistani establishment. They were used against their fellow Afghan brothers in the name of religion and were punished for not showing the unjustified loyalty to the dictatorial regimes that have been in power in Pakistan. All the revenue that has been earned from the water and mineral resources of Pashtoons have been going to the pockets of the Pakistani establishment for the last sixty years.

Despite of all these sacrifices of Pakhtuns at the altar of Pakistan, the extreme injustice is that Pakhtuns have been projected as fanatic and terrorists by the state-controlled media and are still intentionally kept backward and deprived of basic human rights. The Punjabi dominated establishment of Pakistan has left no stones unturned to keep Pakhtuns geo-politically divided, economically poor and deprived nation.

In the current geo-political scenario when the resources of Pakhtuns are being exploited by the Punjab dominated institutions in Pakistan, the only option Pakhtuns have for their existence and survival is political struggle to fight for their rights. The focus of the struggle for claiming the rights of Pakhtuns should be the following:

1) To reclaim and unite the Pakhtun majority areas of current “NWFP”, “FATA”, Pakhtun areas of Western Punjab like Attock & Mianwali and Pakhtun part of Balochistan (which constitutes more than 45 percent of Balochsitan) into a single united province which should be preferably called Pakhtunkhwa.

2) To claim complete provincial autonomy, royalty of all the natural resources including water along with its profit from WAPDA, natural gas and precious stone etc, limiting the federal responsibilities to few portfolios, effective devolution of powers from center to provinces and proportionate representation in all federal institutions.

3) To claim extra budget for education and development on priority and emergency basis for the deprived areas of Pakhtuns from federal government which has been enjoying all the aid, for the last three decades, that has been given by the world community for the development and rehabilitation of Pakhtuns but which has been used for killing Pakhtuns on both sides of the border.

The major problem of Pakhtuns is not the claim for name or identity of their province in a state which itself is suffering from identity crises due to having an alien language as its national language. The major issue of Pakhtuns is to put and end to the status quo on the historic injustice done to the Pukhton nation as a result of which their unity was torn apart and they were intentionally divided into different administrative units to prevent their united struggle for basic human rights including the right to govern their own land.

The history of nations is witness to the fact that blood is thicker than water. Though idealistic it might sound but it seems that the forces of history will compel Pakhtuns of Pakistan and Afghanistan to get rid of the controversial border dividing the Pakhtuns of Pakistan and Afghanistan. This would be a feasible solution for peace in south Asia because contrary to other nations of Pakistan, Pakhtuns are not Indians by origin and hence have no grudge, jealousy or rivalry either with the inhabitants of current India or those of current Pakistan.

The failure to have an Afghanistan without the current Pakhtuns of Pakistan would result in an unstable Afghanistan which would definitely affect Pakistan and South Asia because Pakhtuns can only die for Pakhtunwali or religion but never for a country whose army, establishment, terrorist groups and ethnic parties have been involved in killing their kins and are ever ready not to spare any other chance to repeat the same criminal role.

National Unity and Survival of Pakhtuns

2008-06-22T08:10:00.000-07:00

Due to the geo-strategic coordinates of Pakhun land as a gateway to south Asia, the expansionist designs of imperialist powers from Alexander to Babur played a catastrophic role in destabilizing Pakhtun land.Despite of lacking organised defense mechanism and military technology, Pakhtuns resisted all invaders and kept on fighting till they kicked their enemy out of their land.While Pakhtuns never invaded any nation or state, the imperialist powers never let them live in peace and work for the development and stability of their land. Pakhtuns suffered a lot due to their defensive policy and principle of non interference.

It was in 1747 that Ahmed Shah Baba, contrary to the defensive policy of Pakhtuns, adopted the policy of offence as a means of defense, to establish the first Afghan republic extending between central and south Asia.The secret behind the establishment of Afghan Empire under the leadership of Ahmed Shah Baba was that he gave a political vision and a national goal to the disintegrated and disillusioned Afghans. It was the struggle for the achievement of this goal which resulted in the unity of Afghan tribes. This historic achievement showed that the unity of Pakhtuns was the effect of a cause and not a cause in itself. It established the fact that no nation can be united without a goal.

National goal is the binding force for any nation hence the contemporary leadership of Pakhtuns should also set a clear national goal for the nation if the leadership is sincere to see the national unity of Pakhtuns. Let us analyse the strategy of the antagonist forces in Pakistan working against Pakhtuns in order to break their unity and prevent them from becoming ‘a power to reckon with’ on the map of the world.

1. Retaining the British administrative division of Pakhtunkhwa according to which Pukhtunkhwa was first separated from Afghanistan and was further subdivided into NWFP, FATA and Pakhtun belt of Attock, Mianwali, Dera Ghazi Khan and Balochistan.

2. Formation of Pro-Military and hence pro-Punjab constitution to safeguard the vested interests of Punjab.

3. Preventing the formation of popularly elected governments.

4. Intervention by military forces with the help of its agencies to pressurize the elected governments in case the elected governments want to do any legislation against the national interests of Punjab.

5. To topple the elected government if they dare to take any bold decision in the interests of masses against the will of the military forces.

6. To project the vested interests of Punjab and military forces synonymous with the national interests of Pakistan.

7. To deteriorate the law and order situation in Pakhtun regions by using military forces and its agencies to discourage investment and developmental work.

8. To compel the brain trust to migrate from the Pakhtun land so that Pakhtun land suffers from brain drain. The proof of the above cited fact is the continuous outflow and outsourcing of skilled human resource to Karachi, Middle East, Far East and Europe from Pakhtunkhwa and Afghanistan and the investment of Pakhtun businessmen and traders in the cities oft Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Lahore, Faisalabad and Karachi instead of investing in Pakhtun land.

9. Fabricating and catalyzing the differences between the Pakhtun and Non Pakhtun population of Afghanistan by infiltrating ISI agents into Taliban to fight against ISAF forces.

10. Projecting Taliban as the representative group of Pakhtuns so that the gulf of hatred could be inculcated between Pakhtun and ISAF forces on one side and between the Pakhtuns of Afghanistan and that of Pakistan on the other.

11. The operation of Military forces in FATA to support Taliban so they can hijack the tribal as well as settled areas of Pakhtunkhwa.

12. The support of Taliban by military forces from FATA region to back them up against the ISAF forces in Afghanistan and giving a wrong impression to the world that it is the Pakhtuns of the Tribal region who are responsible for supporting Taliban.

13. The hypocritical foreign policy of Pakistani establishment to talk about promoting mutual friendship and collaboration between Afghanistan and Pakistan and continuing military operations in the tribal areas of Pakhtunkhwa to make it a “no-go-area” for the common Pakhtuns and discourage rather prevent all sorts of mutual interaction between the Pakhtuns across the border.

14. Showing a tough stance on relations between India and Pakistan but at the same time opening all vistas of opportunity and mutual interaction between east and west Punjab.

Power is like money and lack of power is poverty. Money attracts more money and poverty brings more deprivation till it questions the very existence of the poor. Without power Pakhtuns are poor and their poverty will keep on depriving them of all their resources of livelihood till it finally threatens their survival.Pakhtun have witnessed the phase of their political and economic deprivation and now their very survival is under threat.

Pakhtun are being killed and compelled to take revenge so that their mass killing can be justified, their victimization is the target of ethnic cleansing in Karachi, their massacre is in progress in FATA and they are suffering in the resonating explosions of bombs planted by Pakistani agencies in different cities of NWFP and Balochistan.The occupied Pakhtun heaven-on-earth is being wrongly projected as a safe haven for foreign terrorists.

It seems that the atrocities and injustice against Pakhtuns and other oppressed nations in Pakistan will compel the Pakhtuns and their leadership to initiate a struggle for their survival and freedom.

It is time to regain the political control of Pakhtun-soil in Pakistan by putting an end to the occupation of agencies once and for all before it is too late and life for a Pakhtun becomes something to hate. It is better to die for the freedom of Pakhtun soil while raising your voice than to live like a slave in a country which is ready to sell your resources and quote your price.

Pukhtoons are not terrorists

2008-06-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

Pakistan is burning for the last few years in particular Pakhtoon belt. Not a single day passes with out any bomb blast, suicide attack, rocket firing & hand grenade being blasted or thrown on security forces.

There are many aspects to the recent blood shed in our beloved country but the US attacks on Bajur’s seminary couple of years back had been the profound reason behind this blood cycle & the Lal Masjid mayhem added fuel to fire as most of the victims of these assaults were Pakhtoons of tribal belt.

In order to get revenge of their beloved ones killed in tribal agencies & Lal Masjid the people here had different ideas & to be tactful we have to feel the grievances of these poor people.

Another important aspect of the recent suicide attacks is that these all were directed against security forces & it speaks lot about the intentions of these attacks.

Pakhtoons have voted for a progressive part in Feb. 18 elections which seemed to be absurd for many but it should not be so as Pakhtoons are moderate & broad minded people despite being targeted at many stages including our tribal belt & southern Afghanistan.

Pakistan can get rid of these all troubles in only way & that is to say good by to US war on terror & that is it. We can not afford fighting a foreign war in our home land. It should be clear to every one.

WAJID ALI KHAN (FOREST MINISTER)

2008-06-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

Born in 1958, Wajid Ali Khan belongs to an influential and political family of Swat valley. His elders remained stanch supporters of Khudai Khidmatgar movement of Baacha Khan.

Graduated from historic Jehanzeb College, Mr. Khan’s quest for higher education landed him in Karachi. He did his LLB from Sind Muslim Law College Karachi in 1983-84.

Mr. Wajid Ali Khan was among the main leaders of Pakhtun Students Federation during his college life and remained provincial chief organizer of PkSF Sindh. He also served as district general secretary of the Awami National Party. Currently he is central secretary foreign affairs of the party.

In 1990, he became member of the provincial assembly from his native Swat district since then he has been contesting election on ANP ticket.

In recent general elections, he won the provincial assembly seat from PF-80 Swat-1 and party nominated him as Minster for Forest, Environment, Wildlife, Fisheries and Transport.

He says that he would work for a forestation and overall improvement of the ecology of the province.

“Pakhtunkhwa was blessed with immense natural resources including forest, but this potential area of the province was at verge of destruction because of illegal deforestation by timer mafia”.

He says that forest was the main ingredient for environment and wildlife, however, the destruction caused to it had badly affected the eco-system of the province.

“Being a resident of hilly area, I believe that protection of forest and environment should be my top priority areas”.

Pukhtoons are witnessing the most important epoch of politics.

2008-06-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

The Minister for Information and Inter Provincial Coordination Mian Iftikhar Hussain has urged the activists of Pukhtoon Students Federation (PSF) to concentrate on their studies and work for a genial atmosphere in educational institutions of the province.
He was talking to a delegation of the Federation led by its provincial president Shakeel, here on Friday. After an in depth discussion on the activities and organizational matters of the PSF, the minister said “Pukhtoons are witnessing the most important epoch of politics and therefore have a lots of responsibilities on their shoulders”
Highlighting the role of youth in the development of a country, Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that attaining high standard of education was the first priority of the students.
He asked the Pukhtoon Students Federation to work for an affable and gracious atmosphere in the educational institutions and help resolve the genuine problems of the student’s community.
Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that Pukhtoon nation was facing a number of challenges however said that the most important challenge was the restoration of peace in the region.
He urged the activists of Pukhtoon Students Federation to consciously work for propagation of the thoughts of Bacha Khan, Wali Khan and Asfandyar Khan in general masses and students.
He expressed hope that PSF will play a positive role in eradication of social ills from the society.
Meanwhile a delegation of the Radio Pakistan also called on the minister.
The delegation apprised the minister of their problems and sought minister’s help in getting these problems resolved.
Mian Iftikhar Hussain assured the delegation of full cooperation and said that all the problems being faced by the employees of Radio would be considered sympathetically.

1st Leader of the Opposition

2008-06-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

Khan Abdul Wali Khan

1st Leader of the Opposition
In office
1972 – 1975
Succeeded by Sherbaz Mazari
President of National Awami Party(Wali)
In office
1968 – 1975
Preceded by Maulana Bhashani
President Awami National Party
In office
1986 – 1990
Succeeded by Ajmal Khattak
Born 11 January 1917
Utmanzai, North-West Frontier Province
Died 26 January 2006
Peshawar, Pakistan
Political party National Awami Party(Wali), Awami National Party
Spouse Nasim Wali Khan
Residence Walibagh, Charsadda, North-West Frontier Province
Religion Islam

Khan Abdul Wali Khan Pashto:(خان عبدالولي خان) (b. January 11, 1917 – d. January 26, 2006) was a Pashtun freedom fighter against the British Raj, a senior politician in Pakistan and a writer.

His early years were marked by his involvement in his fathers non-violent resistance movement, the "red shirts" against the British Raj. Narrowly escaping an attempt on his life he was later sent to school at Dera Dhun.

In his late teens he became active in the Indian National Congress. After the formation of Pakistan, Khan became a controversial figure in Pakistani politics, he was referred to as both a hero and traitor during his political career because of his association to the Congress which opposed the creation of Pakistan.

A respected politician in his later years, he contributed to Pakistan's third constitution, led protests for the restoration of democracy in the 1960s and 1980s. In the 1970s, he also served as the parliamentry leader of opposition in Pakistan's first directly elected parliament.

His political career was marked by opposition from opponents who considered him to be stubborn and inflexible, due his criticisms of the political dominance of Punjab and the Pakistani Army.[1] His final years were marked by his criticism of the Taliban and his support for their ouster.

He was a powerful advocate of Pashtunistan and Pashtun nationalism, provincial (state) rights within Pakistan's federal structure and despite remained an advocate of political change through dialogue

PAKHTOONS DEFINATION

2008-06-20T09:58:00.000-07:00

As Abdul Ghani Khan spoke about Pakhtoons/Pashtuns/Pakhtuns:

The people I love, which makes my task harder than ever.

Pakhtuns, the simply amazing and amazingly simple people, are not easy to love. Pakhtun takes a lot of knowing. Pakhtun is the most complicated simplicity. I want to bring him down from the hills of Khyber and the plains of Hashtnager, face to face with you in his torn clothes and grass sandals, his eyes full of manliness, mirth and mischievous sprite, and his head full of infantile and noble pride - the paramount camouflage he uses to hide his desires

Khans of Kalat

2008-06-14T04:16:00.001-07:00

Authentic history begins with the reign of the Khans of Kalat, the rulers of Kalat were never fully independent, there was always a paramount power to whom they were subject. In the earliest times they were merely petty chiefs: later they bowed to the orders of the Mughal emperors of Delhi and to the rulers of Kandahar, and supplied men-at-arms on demand. Most peremptory orders from the Afghan rulers to their vassals of Kalat are still extant, and the predominance of the Sadozais and Barakzais was acknowledged so late as 1838. It was not until the time of Nasir Khan I that the titles of Beglar Begi (Chief of Chiefs) and Wali-i-Kalat (Governor of Kalat) were conferred on the Kalat ruler by the Afghan kings.^[16]

For the first 150 years, up to the death of Mir Mahmud Khan I, a gradual extension of power took place and the building up of a constitution which, looking at the condition of the country, is a marvel of political sagacity and practical statesmanship. A period of social ferment, anarchy, and rebellion succeeded, in which sanguinary revolts rapidly alternated with the restoration of a power ruthless in retaliation, lasting into the period of British Government.^[16]

As the Mughal power decayed, the Ahmadzai chiefs found themselves freed in some degree from external interference. The first problem that presented itself was to secure mutual cohesion and co-operation in the loose tribal organization of the state, and this was effected by adopting a policy of parcelling out a portion of all conquests among the poverty-stricken highlanders. Thus all gained a vested interest in the welfare of the community, while receiving provision for their maintenance. A period of expansion then commenced. Mir Ahmad made successive descents on the plains of Sibi. Mir Samandar extended his raids to Zhob, Bori, and Thal-Chotiali, and levied an annual sum of Rs. 40,000 from the Kalhoras of Sindh.^[16]

Mir Abdullah, the greatest conqueror of the dynasty, turned his attention westward to Makran, while in the north-east he captured Pishin and Shorawak from the Ghilzai rulers of Kandahar. He was eventually slain in a fight with the Kalhoras at Jandrihar near Sanni in Kachhi. During the reign of Mir Abdullah's successor, Mir Muhabbat, Nadir Shah rose to power; and the Ahmadzai ruler obtained through him in 1740 the cession of Kachhi, in compensation for the blood of Mir Abdullah and the men who had fallen with him. The Brahuis had now gained what highlanders must always covet, good cultivable lands; and, by the wisdom of Muhabbat Khan and of his brother Nasir Khan, certain tracts were distributed among the tribesmen on the condition of finding so many men-at-arms for the Khan's body of irregular troops. At the same time much of the revenue-paying land was retained by the Khan for himself.^[17]

The forty-four years of the rule of Nasir Khan I, known to the Brahuis as 'The Great,' and the hero of their history, were years of strenuous administration and organization interspersed with military expeditions. He accompanied Ahmad Shah in his expeditions to Persia and India, while at home he was continuously engaged in the reduction of Makran, and, after nine expeditions to that country, he obtained from the Gichkis the right to the collection of half the revenues. A wise and able administrator, Nasir Khan was distinguished for his prudence, activity, and enterprise. He was essentially a warrior and a conqueror, and his spare time was spent in hunting. At the same time he was most attentive to religion, and enjoined on his people strict attention to the precepts of Islamic law. His reign was free from those internecine conflicts of which the subsequent story of Kalat offers so sad a record.^[17]

The reign of Nasir Khan's successor, Mir Mahmud Khan, was distinguished bv little except revolts. In I810 Pottinger visited his capital and has left a full record of his experience.^[18] The reign of Mir Mehrab Khan was one long struggle with his chiefs, many of whom he murdered. He became dependent on men of the stamp of Mulla Muhammad Hasan and Saiyid Muhammad Sharif, by whose treachery, at the beginning of the first Afghan War, Sir William Macnaghten and Sir Alexander Burnes were deceived into thinking that Mehrab Khan was a traitor to the British; that he had induced the tribes to oppose the advance of the British army through the Bolan Pass; and that finally, when Sir Alexander Burnes was returning from a mission to Kalat, he had caused a robbery to be committed on the party, in the course of which an agreement, which had been executed between the envoy and the Khan, was carried off. This view determined the diversion of Sir Thomas Willshire's brigade from Quetta to attack Kalat in 1839, an act which has been described by Malleson as 'more than a grave error, a crime.'^[19] The place was taken by assault and Mehrab Khan was slain.[1

Mongol to Mughal era

2008-06-14T04:15:00.000-07:00

Shortly afterwards Balochistan fell to Nasir-ud-din Sabuktagin, Sabuktagin's son Mahmud of Ghazi was able to conquer Sindh due to his possession of Khuzdar. After the Ghaznivids the area passed to the Ghorids and a little later became part of the dominion of Sultan Muhammad Khan of Khwazrizm (Khiva) in 1219.^[8] However around 1223 a Mongol expedition under Chagatai, the son of Genghiz Khan, penetrated as far as Makran. A few years later, southern Baluchistan briefly came under the rule of Sultan Altamsh of Delhi but soon came back under Mongol rule. The raids organised by the Mongols have left a lasting mark on history of Baluchistan, from Makran to Gomal the Mongol (known to the people as Mughal) and the atrocities they caused are still well know.^[8]

Afterwards the history of Balochistan centres around Kandahar and is was in this area in 1398 that Pir Muhammad, the grandson of Timur, fought the Afghans in the Sulaiman mountains. According to local tradition Timur himself passed through Marri country during one of his Indian expeditions.^[8]

The succeeding century is one of great historical interest. The Baloch extended their power to Kalat, Kachhi, and the Punjab, and the wars took place between Mir Chakar the Rind and Gwahram Lashari which are so celebrated in Baloch verse. In these wars a prominent part was played by Mir Zunnun Beg, Arghun, who was governor of north-eastern Baluchistan under Sultan Husain Mirza of Herat about 1470. At the same time the Brahuis had been gradually gaining strength, and their little principality at this time extended through the Jhalawan country to Wad.^[15]

The Arghuns shortly afterwards gave way before Babar. From 1556 to 1595 the country was under the Safavid dynasty. Then it fell into the hands of the Mughals of Delhi until 1638, when it was again transferred to Persia. We have an interesting account of Baluchistan in the Ain-i-Akbari. In 1590 the upper highlands were included in the sarkdr of Kandahar, while Kachhi was part of the Bhakkar sarkdr of the Multan Subah. Makrdn alone remained independent under the Maliks, Buledais, and Gichkis, until Nasir Khan I of Kalat brought it within his power during the eighteenth century.^[15]

From the middle of the seventeenth century Baluchistan remained under the Safavids till the rise of the Ghilzai power in I708. The latter in its turn gave way before Nadir Shah, who, during the first part of the eighteenth century, made several expeditions to or through Baluchistan. Ahmad Shah Durrani followed; and thenceforth the north-eastern part of the country, including almost all the areas now under direct administration, remained under the more or less nominal suzerainty of the Sadozais and Barakzais till I879, when Pishin, Duki, and Sibi passed into British hands by the Treaty of Gandamak. Meanwhile the whole of Western Baluchistan had been consolidated into an organized state under the Ahmadzai Khans of Kalat. All tradition asserts that the former rulers of Kalat were Hindus, Sewa by name.^[15]

As Muslim dynasties held Baluchistan from about the seventh century, we must look to an earlier period for the date of the Sewas; and it is not improbable that they were connected with the Rai dynasty of Sind, whose genealogical table includes two rulers named Sihras. The Mirwaris, from whom the Ahmadzais are descended, claim Arab origin. In their earlier legends we find them living at Surab near Kalat, and extending their power thence in wars with the Jats or Jadgals. They then fell under the power of the Mongols; but one of their chiefs, Mir Hasan, regained the capital from the Mongol governor, and he and his successors held Kalat for twelve generations till the rise of Mir Ahmad in I666-7. It is from Mir Ahmad that the eponym Ahmadzai is derived.^[15]

Islamic conquest of Balochistan

2008-06-14T04:14:00.000-07:00

In the 7th century the current Balochistan province of Pakistan was divided into two main regions, its south western parts were part of Karman province of Persian Empire and north eastern region was part of the Persian province Sistan. The southern region was included in Makran, prior to the Islamic era - the suzerainty over the petty rulers of Baluchistan alternative between east and west. In the 14th year of the Hijra, 636-6CE, Rai Chach marched from Sindh and conquered Makran, however in 643 the Arabs reached Makran.^[8] In early 644 CE, Caliph Umar sent Suhail ibn Adi from Busra to conquer the Karman region of Iran; he was made governor of Karman. From Karman he entered the western Baluchistan and conquered the region near to Persian frontiers.^[9] South Western Balochistan was conquered during the campaign in sistan the same year. During Caliph Uthman’s reign in 652, Balochistan was re-conquered during the campaign against the revolt in Karman, under the command of Majasha ibn Masood, it was first time when western Baluchistan came directly under the Laws of Caliphate and gave tribute on agriculture.^[10]In those days western Baluchistan was included in the dominion of Karman. In 654 Abdulrehman ibn Samrah was made governor of Sistan, an Islamic army was sent under him to crush the revolt in Zarang, which is now in southern Afghanistan. Conquering Zarang a column moved north ward to conquer areas up to Kabul and Ghazni in Hindu Kush Mountains, while another column moved towards North western Baluchistan and conquered area up to the ancient city of Dawar and Qandabil (Bolan),^[11] by 654 the whole of what is now Baluchistan province of Pakistan was under the rule of Rashidun Caliphate except for the well defended mountain town of QaiQan (now Kalat), which was conquered during Caliph Ali’s reign. ^[12] Abdulrehman ibn Samrah made Zaranj his provincial capital and remained governor of these conquered areas from 654 to 656, until Uthman was murdered. During the Caliphate of Ali, the areas of Balochistan, Makran again broke into revolt. Due to civil war in the Islamic empire Ali was unable to take notice of these areas, at last in the year 660 he sent a large force under the command of Haris ibn Marah Abdi towards Makran, Baluchistan and Sind. Haris ibn Marah Abdi arrived in Makran and conquered it by force then moved north ward to north eastern Balochistan and re-conquered Qandabil (bolan), then again moving south finally conquered Qaiqan (kalat) after a fierce battle^[13]. In 663 CE, during the reign of Umayyad Caliph Muawiyah I, Muslim lost control of North eastern Balochistan and Kalat when Haris ibn Marah and large part of army died in the battle field against a revolt in Kalat.^[14] Muslim forces latter re-gained the control of the area during Umayyads reign. It also remained part of Abbasid Caliphate's empire.

Arab rule in Balochistan lasted until the end of the tenth century, the parts of Balochistan best known to them were, Turan (the Jhalawan country) with its capital at Khuzdar, and Nudha or Budha (Kachhi). Around 976 Ibn Haukal, during second visit to India, found an Arab governor residing in Kaikanan (probably the modern Nal) and governing Khuzdar.^[8]

HISTORY OF BALOCHISTAN

2008-06-14T04:13:00.001-07:00

Balochistan is one of the four provinces of Pakistan.^[1] It was conquered by the British Empire on October 1, 1887^[2] and became part of British India. In 1947, when Pakistan became independent, most of Balochistan became a province of Pakistan, the following year the princely state of Kalat was annexed to Pakistan. Since then, a number of separatist groups in the province have engaged in an armed struggle against the Pakistani government, the first was led by Prince Karim Khan in 1948, and later by Nawab Nowroz Khan in 1968. These tribal uprisings were limited in scope, a more serious insurgency was led by the Marri and Mengal tribes between 1973 and 1977. All these groups fought for the existence of a "Greater Balochistan" — a single independent state ruled under tribal jirgas (a tribal system of government) and comprising the historical Balochistan region, presently split between Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. In 2005 there was another struggle to achieve these aims, in 2006, the Pakistan army killed Nawab Akbar Bugti^[3], the man they blamed for the violence.^[4]. Bugti may be a proclaimed offender for Pakistan's military-led ruling establishment but he has become a hero for his own people.^[5]

ABDUL SAMMAD KHAN ACHAKZAI

2008-06-14T04:10:00.000-07:00

Freedom is the most expensive word in the world becouse Mr.Human has paid more then any thing to have it and keep it.From centuries individuals and nations are fighting to achive the glory of freedom.Those who are working for freedom are the most holy persons in the world.
Pashtoon nation also had great leaders whose leadership brought prosperity and liberty to the nation.

Pashtoon pioneers and freedom fighters like Bayazeed Roshan,Khushal Khan Khattak,Sher sha suri,Mirwais Neka,Ghazi Amanullah Khan,Khan Abdul Ghafar khan Bacha Khan and Baba e Pashtoon Khan e Shaheed Khan Abdul samad Khan Achakzai fought for the freedom of Afghan pashtoon nation and lived thier lives for one cause that was to keep the nation independent and live like an honorable human bieng on thier home land.

In 1907 on south Pashtoonkhwa(balochistan) horizon,a bloom star was born,showing sign for liberty,equality fraternity and sovereignty through son of soil,Khan addus samad khan Achakzai,born simultaneously in the pious priest family of Maulana Noor Mohammad Khan and Begum Noor Mohammad Khan at Inayatullah Karez near Gulistan,close to quetta.Maulana Noor Mohammad Achakzai imparted to his son samad best of religiouse and academic education to meet the challanges of the closing 19th century and beginning of the 20th century,Samad Achakzai proved worthy of trust reposed in him,by his parents.Samad acquired Knowledge of rekigiouse education at home and then modern education available at Govt School Gulistan.Samad excelled in both which broadened his horizon to handle hazardous personal and political life.

TENDER AGE:-

At tender age of 10 inspired by his political inborn instinct samad led school student's procession to protest against British imperialists about Afghanistan and Khilafat Movement.Student's procession went on well without voilence,as he firmly believed in non-voilence amply proved by his political career,all his life.His successful students procession at Gulistan,however provoked Quetta-pashin political Agent( a single office,Combining pelf and power of collector,Dietric Magistrate,Deputy Commissioner and PA with full control over tribes and tribal territory under his area of administration).Samad was reprimanded.His parents were warned against this samad's semi political activity,believed to be prejudicail to the British Balochistan.Seed of politics already shown in samad by leading student's procession at tender age of 10,had taken shape of a political sapling.This political sapling led is to samads first lading in prison as a political prisoner in Quetta for 28 days.It so happend,when Khan Samad Achakzai raised a group of like-minded young men from balochistan to back Ghazi Amanullah khan of Afghanistan against whom British imperialists had conspired to topple him khan samad khan and his colleagues were let off,from Quetta only when the British Imperrialists succeeded in Amanullah's outer from Afghanistan.

DEVIATION:-

Then British Govt: made an abortive attempt at deviating Khan samad Achakzai from his path of politics by offering him the post of Extra Assistant Commissioner(EAC) at chaman.pak-Afghan border town as well as chieftain of Achakzai tribe.He declined both these offers and decided on continuing his political journey and political career under extremely difficult exceptional circumstances.

POLITICAL JOURNEY:-

Khan Samad's journey begain from Balochistan to punjab in 1929.As a Voraciouse reader with an eagle eye on current affairs,Mr.Samad Achakzai had attained political maturity,as a teenager, on account of two earth moving events.One was Russian revolution in Oct 1917.Russain Revolutionary labour party, BOLSHVIC against imperialist Czar of Russia, brought in to being union of Soviet Socialist Republic(USSR).
1917 october Revolution freed subjugated nations of Russia on the principle of self-determination and equality of nation from the imperialist forces.it emancipated enslaved Russians and established thier own Republics, where with thier own free will, formed USSR, setting practical example of political ideals for national and socail freedom. Such development as the evalution of USSR, had a political impact on the political philosophy of Khan Samad Achakzai who firmed believed in the freedom of Nations from the Yoke of British imperialism.

PASHTOON NATIONALISTS:-

As a Pashtoon nationalist, Khan Samad Achakzai accompanied by his two colleagues Qazi Mohammad Qahir Khan and Obaidullah Khan journeyed to lahore in Dec 1929, to listen to indain nationalists including Dr.Saifullah Kuchlo and Sonobar Hussain Mohmand at annual Congregation of Indain Congress. Influenced by Indain Congress Congregation at Lahore, Khan on his return to Quetta, Launched his political movement with first public meeting in the city Mosque. Quetta Mosque meeting led to the arrest of Khan Samad Khan Achakzai and his two other political activists..Abdul Salam Khan and Mr. Mohammad Ayub Khan. In 1930, Khan Samad Khan was commited to Pashtoon Jirga in Quetta. The Jirga convicted him and sentenced him to Two years R.I. The Jirga found him guilty of attending a political meeting at Lahore under the aegis of Indain Congress and others and distributing Political litrature in Balochistan on his return from Lahore. The Jirga also found him guilty of addressing a sort of political meeting at a mosque in Quetta. There was ban on freedom of expression and freedom of press in British Balochistan. He underwent imprisonment at prison in Quetta and mach,for eleven months. Later on his release in 1931, Khan Samad Khan Achakzai, went all the way from balochistan to Bombay, hub of political activity. At Bombay Khan Samad Khan met Mahatma Gandhi and presented to him a Pamphlet prepared by him, partaining to Balochistan problums Mahatma Gandhi's Secretary Mr. Pyre lal translated Khan Samad's Urdu version of the Pamphlet in to English. Printing and publication of Khan Samad's pamphlet cost was borne by Mahatma Gandhi him self. It was very well circulated in the political and press circles for proper projection and publicity through print media. At Khan Samad's meeting with Mr. Gandhi before his deaprture for round table conference in London for India's independence, were present Khan Abdul Ghafar Khan Bacha Khan, Barrister Ahmad Shah, Amir Mohammad Khan and other's.

TURNING POINT:-

Khan Samad's meeting with Gandhi Ji and Khan Abdula Ghafar Khan turned out to be a turning point in his political fight for freedom. Khan Samad Khan Aslo had an oppotunity of meeting with Dr. Mohammad Iqbal in Lahore. The punjab press gave him full blast publicity and boosted his political morale for liberty equality fraternity and sovereignty of people. He continued his fight for freedom on balochistan soil, Rendered supreme sacrifies and maintained relentless struggle for freedom of expression and freedom of press, till he was captured in Quetta in 1942 on false and fabricated charges. Samad's sacrifices and struggle won freedom for India in Aug 1947....India was partitioned in to two soveriegn states...Baharat and Pakistan. Even after the advent of Pakistan, Khan Samad Khan continued to suffer from imprisonment till 1954, on his release he formed a political party WRORE PASHTOON to fight for creation of PASHTOONISTAN within Pakistan.After short terms freedom, Samad was shackled by fits and starts on cooked up charges till Feb.24 1969, when prsident Field marshal Ayub Khan agreed for roundtable with conference with opposition leaders of undivided pakistan. At the roundtable conference, Khan Samad Khan strrongly advocated for the creation of provinces on linguistic and cultural basis after the break-up of the then existing one unit. This one unit consisted of punjab,sindh,NWFP, Quetta and Qalat divisiions of Balochistan. By stroke of pen, Gen. Yahya Khan, who had snatched power from president Field Marshal Ayub Khan. broke one unit before General Elections 1970. He restored all the provinces of the Punjab, Sindh and NWFP. He converted Quetta and Qalat division in to a province and elevated them to Balochistan provincail status. As Khan Samad's demand for PASHTOONISTAN province within pakistan was not fully supported by Nap, so he withdrew from NAP and formed Pashtoonkhwa National Awamy Party(PNAP). He and his party won election on PNAP tickets and won seats in provencail assembly in 1970.Khan e Shaheed Khan Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai was Martyred while a sleep on Dec 2 1973. Two hand grenades were hurled in the bedroom of small house by terrorists, martyring towering personality, who always stood as bulwark against terrorism,religouse extremism and subersion of people's sovereignty.
Khan Samad's small house, built of mud, cement. bricks and tin still existing in a lane, where some member's of his family lives, is an ample of testimoney that though he was in corridore during late Mr. Z.A bhutto, first elected prime minister of Pakistan after General Elections 70, yet he neither made any fortune nor minted money shaheed Samad simply lived and died for his countrymen and left behind a party now known as Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awamy Party.

Two Islamic Soldiers

2008-06-12T01:06:00.000-07:00

The Silent Soldier

General Akhtar, 1924-1988, lead the Afghan Jihad against the Soviet Union and associated Afghan communist regime. He was Director-General of the ISI, Pakistan's equivalent of the CIA, from 1979-1987. Unlike the CIA, the ISI is responsible for domestic as well as international spying and covert operations, with its leadership consequently feared by many, including much of Pakistan's military. Given the length of Akhtar's tenure, and the power of the position, he was a central figure in military dictator President Zia-ul-Haq's administration.

Of East Punjabi descent, Akhtar joined the military in 1946 as a young man, and after the partition of India, and subsequent creation of Pakistan, was to fight in three wars against India. Introspective in nature, Akhtar preferred anonymity to being in the public eye (unlike some of his military colleagues), and was referred to by colleagues as the silent soldier.

Drawing upon his extensive military experience and knowledge of tribal culture and methods of fighting, Akhtar planned and directed the Afghan Jihad, supported by American, Saudi and to a lesser extent, Chinese funds. Akhtar worked closely to carry out the Jihad with CIA head William Casey in an atmosphere of mutual trust and cooperation. Casey apparently shared with the Afghan Mujahideen leaders a deep respect for Akhtar's military cunning and demanding personal leadership. Akhtar would often tell the Mujahideen leaders, "Kabul must burn." Some 70% of American funds for the Mujahideen went to Islamic extremists, again not for reasons of religious purity, but because of the extremists' wartime effectiveness. Ultimately, Akhtar was the only military leader since World War II to take the Soviet Union on in the battlefield and inflict vast and telling losses.

Akhtar explicitly acknowledged to Zia-ul-Haq while planning the Afghan Jihad that it would be seen as having a compelling moral force. Indications are that he not only viewed this as a useful propaganda weapon, but that he faithfully believed it himself, for he drew upon his Muslim faith and identity throughout his military career. India's partition influenced this when he was almost killed by Hindus while on duty because he was Muslim, being saved only by the arrival of fellow Muslims. According to a Brigadier who worked particularly closely with him during the Afghan Jihad, the massacres of Muslims by Hindus and Sikhs during partition was "never forgotten and never forgiven," and for the rest of his life, "he regarded India as an implacable enemy, both of his country and his religion." A fellow military officer, recalling an incident in the 1970's, remarked "One evening we were out together in a forward locality, and from my vantage point we could clearly see a big town in Indian held Kashmir. He stood there and stared at the town for a long time. The lights in the houses were coming on one by one. He ground his teeth and said, 'if only once I get the orders you will see what I do.' He walked around like a caged lion ... his own eyes reflected the intense feeling he felt for the pain and suffering of his fellow Muslims over there." Akhtar's great ambition, said the Brigadier, was "that after the Soviet defeat he would be able to visit Kabul and offer prayers to Allah for freeing the city from His enemies."

The Nonviolent Soldier of Islam

Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, 1890-1988 (Akhtar died the same year), was a nonviolent soldier who fought for freedom and justice for more than 70 years. Incredibly, he raised a large nonviolent Muslim army to fight British colonial rule from the midst of a proud and largely tribal people, the Pathans (also referred to as Pashtoons or Pakhtoons), who had a renowned history of fighting using handmade guns, daggers, and at times outrageous cunning. This army, called the Khudai Khidmitgars ("Servants of God"), remained resolutely nonviolent in the face of severe repression and humiliation from British colonial rulers. The British violence was of similar savagery and intensity to that which the Taliban has dished out in the last few years, except it lasted for many decades. There were no pretensions of "civilized" warfare for the British: in the words of one of their 1930 reports, "The brutes must be ruled brutally and by brutes." The British regarded the area, the North West Frontier Province, as being of great strategic significance, as it was the gateway to India, and they wanted their crown jewel colony to remain under their control. The last thing they wanted to see were organized, unified Pathans. The Pathans, meanwhile, had a burning desire for freedom. So the British cut down the Khudai Khidmitgars with ruthless violence, and tried to sow dissension among the Pathans through divide and rule, using their usual methods of bribery and coercion.

Khan's achievements in leading the Khudai Khidmitgars are not easy to overstate. It was astonishing not only that they could remain nonviolent in the face of such horror, but also that they should do so to begin with, given their warlike way of life and easy access to weapons. As British violence like mass shootings, property destruction, and torture (including genital torture) was inflicted, the Khudai Khidmitgars' numbers increased, swelling to around 100,000. Jawaharlal Nehru, who later became India's first prime minister, was stunned by the Khudai Khidmitgars' nonviolence, and found it incredible that "the man who loved his gun better than his child or brother, who valued life cheaply and cared nothing for death, who avenged the slightest insult with the thrust of a dagger, had suddenly become the bravest and most enduring of India's soldiers."

One striking characteristic of Khan throughout his lifetime was his dogged determination to represent the truth, even at great personal expense. As an old man, flying in the face of official propaganda he declared the war in Kashmir was not a Jihad but a façade, hardly endearing himself to the many thousands of Pakistani families who lost their sons in the war. As a young man, when looking for opportunities to serve his people, he began by opening schools and organizing people socially. He was arrested, and brought before a deputy commissioner who wanted to know why officials had allowed him to return to the country after he had gone on pilgrimage to Afghanistan. Khan replied, "First you take our country from us and now you won't even let us live in it?" For this, he was imprisoned three years at hard labor. He was to endure a total of 15 years in British prisons before partition, and a further 15 years in Pakistani prisons after partition, more than one-third of his adult life (and more than Nelson Mandela).

Khan took on not only British imperialism, but looked with a critical eye at his own society, and encouraged reforms. He rallied against the privilege and power of the big landlords and worked to dismantle the local caste system, saying ordinary, working people such as craftsmen should be able to own land. He was almost killed by resentful landlords for doing so. He directly confronted religious ignorance, like the belief that children who attended school would go to hell. He wanted to see women play their rightful role in society, instead of being crushed by the burden of tradition and neglect.

The Khudai Khidmitgars were formed from a largely illiterate society, so in addition to publishing a journal, the Pakhtun, in the early years Khan spread his message of sacrifice, work and forgiveness by personally visiting 500 Pathan villages. While his people may not have been educated, they could recognize selfless action when they saw it. Khan valued selfless service to others as a foundation of religious action. He wrote, with the authority of his life's example, "Religion is also a movement. If selfless, undemanding and holy men and women join this movement and dedicate themselves to the service of their country and the people, this movement is bound to be successful. Such people will be a blessing to mankind. Through their contribution their country and their people will flourish and prosper."

Most of all, Khan directly challenged the role of revenge in society. The culture of the Pathans was tribal, and as Eqbal Ahmad points out, "The tribal code of ethics consists of two words: loyalty and revenge. You are my friend. You keep your word. I am loyal to you. You break your word, I go on my path of revenge." Pathans were long adherents to taking revenge to uphold honor, being somewhat notorious for engaging in bitter family and tribal feuds that could last generations. Khan directly appealed for his people to forgo revenge, and adopt nonviolence. It was an explicit precondition of joining his army. In a society where not to take revenge, and therefore lose one's honor, was considered worse than death, this was a stunning achievement.

Lessons for the Present

What lessons can we learn from the lives of General Akhtar and Abdul Ghaffar Khan and the movements they were associated with if we are to take peace seriously? That is, what do their respective approaches to resolving conflicts and achieving justice tell us about how we can move forward in the present situation?

Combating Communalism

The first, and most obvious lesson to be learned is that when religion is viewed as being communal, it can be rapidly be turned into a highly destructive force. "Crowd psychology is a blind force," wisely remarked renowned Indian literary figure Rabindranath Tagore. "Like steam and other physical forces, it can be utilized for creating a tremendous amount of power. And therefore rulers of men, who out of greed and fear, are bent upon turning their peoples into machines of power, try to train this crowd psychology for their special purposes. They hold it to be their duty to foster in the popular mind universal panic, unreasoning pride in their own race, and hatred of others."

While the same communal forces that almost killed Akhtar at the time of India's partition were overwhelming much of Northern India, the Khudai Khidmitgars patrolled their communities protecting people who belonged to minority religions, saving many lives.

Communalism builds on the belief that one religion is superior to another, or the belief that religious truths are mutually exclusive between religions. These beliefs are in fact the official doctrinal positions of many religious institutions, all of which claim to be speaking with divine authority. For many believers, they are a common sense truth about their beliefs. Khan specifically opposed such brazen foolishness. He proclaimed, "My religion is truth, love, and service to God and humanity." It was his "firm belief" that all religions are based on the same truth, and should be given equal respect. He remained a devout Muslim while eager to learn from other religions. Regarding those who promote communalism--of which he saw a great deal in his life, and the vast suffering it inflicted--he commented "those who are indifferent to the welfare of their fellowmen, those whose hearts are empty of love, those who do not know the meaning of brotherhood, those who harbor hatred and resentment in their hearts, they do not know the meaning of Religion."

The fact is, beliefs of religious superiority are a prime target for extremists to expropriate and twist into their terrible logic. If instead religious believers held a common notion that beneath the surface, all religions teach much the same--naturally with differences reflecting temperament, culture and time--then it would be nonsensical for extremists to claim that alleged divine wrath is on their side. Only fools would take them seriously.

Rejecting Revenge

As we have already noted, Akhtar was unable to forgive Hindus and Sikhs when they massacred Muslims (just as many Hindus and Sikhs were unable to forgive Muslims when they were likewise massacred). Instead he worked to strengthen institutions that depend fundamentally upon revenge, just as the U.S. and British governments are currently doing. The leaders of the Taliban do the same themselves.

Much of the time the U.S. and British governments hide their vengeful focus behind language like "retaliatory strikes," or "bring the perpetrators to justice," and so forth, but revenge is essentially their focus. Ditto for the Taliban. The three are determined to convince respective recipients of their propaganda that this path is the only effective way forward to provide security and make up for the death of their people, irrespective of their falsehood.

It is wise, however, to learn from the experts on revenge before confidently asserting this to be true and proceeding to kill people. The Pathans are experts on revenge. They practiced it fearlessly for hundreds of years, against outsiders and amongst themselves. They celebrated it in their poetry, sang of it in their songs. Presumably all cultures are familiar with husbands taking revenge against adulterous wives and their lovers by killing them, but how many have tales of women rallying their menfolk to take revenge long after the men have been exhausted by it? The huge numbers of Pathans who joined the Khudai Khidmitgars did not give up revenge simply because they admired their leader. They did so because they appreciated the grueling cost of revenge to their society, how it tore apart their families and tribes, and in the context of outside domination, made them susceptible to divide and rule. The Khudai Khidmitgars renounced revenge not from a position of weakness, but one of strength and courage. They held strongly to this belief in the face of severe humiliation and destruction. As outsiders, we can choose to learn from them, and apply the universal insights they worked with to our own lives, or we can ignore them and inflict the consequences upon others and ourselves.

What are these universal insights? Revenge occurs when those who hold onto their hate, and have the ability to channel it into action, do so. Hatred and resentment prosper where there is no forgiveness. To seek protection from violent revenge, a person, family or country can try to suppress it through further violence, or work to create conditions for forgiveness. Essentially, there is no alternative to these two. The consequences of further violence are often quite certain: more violence. As Gandhi once famously remarked, "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."

These insights have already been demonstrated in Afghanistan since September 11. As soon as retaliatory violence in Afghanistan was initiated, bin Laden's followers immediately threatened further violence in return. The U.S. and its allies will try to crush them, but as many observers have tirelessly pointed out, a terrorist operation is extremely difficult to crush, and the violent response is an ideal recruiting drive for more terrorists. Terrorism in fact, thrives on revenge.

A counterargument to all of this, of course, is that the bin Laden's of this world are so extreme, that their view of their religion or ethnicity is so deranged, that only war will keep decent people of the world safe from such rogues. This is where it becomes vital to remember the forces that created bin Laden to begin with. Pakistani and U.S. intelligence services masterminded the war in Afghanistan, the same war bin Laden was recruited for and sharpened his teeth in. It is not important whether bin Laden received training directly from American, British or Pakistani officials (he certainly interacted with them), but what is important to acknowledge is that the type of resistance towards the Soviets aggressively promoted by the U.S., British and Pakistan governments was not the only choice. Yes, the Soviet invasion was a brutal one, but no more brutal than that of the British in the region not so long before. As the Khudai Khidmitgars proved, war was not the only possible response: a more protracted, nonviolent resistance could have saved a lot more lives on both sides, and done much to improve the future development of Afghanistan.

Of course, institutions like the CIA and ISI do not include nonviolent soldiers among their soldiers of choice. This is not a reflection of the effectiveness of nonviolence. Rather, it is merely another indication of the danger of the narrow mindset that is nurtured by such institutions, and if these institutions cannot change their approach, a call for their replacement.

Spiritual Struggle

Rational, detached arguments against the follies of war and revenge are all very well, some claim. But people are profoundly angry, they point out: enraged in the United States, and enraged in the Middle East. Their anger is justified, so the argument goes (a point claimed by all sides in the conflict). Justice must be done.

Now, remarkable as it may seem to some people, religion actually has something rather useful to say about this (Richard Dawkins, are you listening?). It is perhaps most eloquently expressed by Gandhi: "I have learnt through bitter experience the one supreme lesson to conserve my anger, and as heat conserved is transmuted into energy, even so our anger controlled can be transmuted into a power which can move the world."

The struggle to contain and transform anger is an inner struggle. Through the centuries, inner struggles like this have been the specialized domain of the spiritual dimension of religion. It is worthwhile spending a little time pondering this, for in this matter, religion itself is confusing and contradictory.

We can start by taking another look at Khan's statement about those who do not know the meaning of religion. By Khan's reckoning, people like Akhtar are religious only in the sense they identify themselves as belonging to a religion, and perhaps carry out its rituals and customs, and believe in its dogmas. But they have failed to undertake the arduous task of transforming natural feelings of fear and anger, and the desire to retaliate, into positive forces that genuinely contribute to life, rather than take away from it. In short, they identify as religious, but are not spiritual.

When Khan was talking of people whose hearts are empty of love, he was signifying something more than an intellectual or rational struggle. These are absolutely necessary, of course. However, he was talking of a demanding spiritual struggle, of taming forces that can overwhelm us with their intensity: burning anger, seething resentment, and jealous hatred, just to name a few.

"It is my inmost conviction that Islam is amal, yakeen, muhabat [work, faith, and love] and without these the name Muslim is sounding brass and tinkling cymbal," Khan said. He would have fully agreed with the Buddha's statement, "Hatred can never put an end to hatred. Love alone can."

To talk of love in a time of war may seem preposterous and hopelessly idealistic, but this is what Khan and others like him did during their lives, and they were on the front lines. They did this not as part of a post-war reconciliation process, but in the thick of devastating conflict. They went through tremendous suffering fighting tyranny, and despite this they never clamored for revenge. Instead, they called on us to undertake a war within the mind, so that our highest aspirations will be better reflected in our daily realities.

Spirituality itself is nothing other than the interplay between humanity's very highest aspirations and the demands of daily living. With it is an awareness of a dialogue that takes place deep within our minds, urging us to make wise choices, based not on often-tempting short-term satisfaction, but lasting goodness. To be spiritual is to reflect these aspirations in one's thought and actions, very often an arduous and sometimes thrilling undertaking. Spiritual people engage in this noble duty with a sense of purpose; often failing, they pick themselves up after their inevitable mistakes, and encourage others to do the same by their own example.

Spirituality is why Gandhi said to a world focused primarily on the external, "turn the searchlight inwards."

Reforming and Revolutionizing Religion

Religion is the social manifestation of spirituality, the attempt to take the lessons of spiritual traditions and give them institutional status. People are not equal in their spiritual inclinations. We learn from others by example. Spiritual truths, by their very nature, are difficult to communicate. When spirituality is institutionalized into a system of religious thought, and when structures are erected to promote that thought, the very essence of that thought is often lost. Lessons are codified into rules, experiential discoveries transformed into hardened declarations of fact, and questioning and innovation is replaced by a mass of customs and institutions.

Religion may have spirituality for its heart, but all too often creeds and dogmas have been its clenched fist. Throughout history religion has been used to fervently justify staggering levels of violence and social decay. It may often seem that religion is doomed to perpetual failure, trafficking mystery posed as unchallengeable fact, rationalizing authoritarianism, and at best acting as a battered ambulance for the wounded and distressed.

Perhaps Tagore had this in mind when he continued his discussion on crowd psychology by saying, "Therefore I do not put my faith in any new institution, but in the individuals all over the world who think clearly, feel nobly, and act rightly, thus becoming the channels of moral truth. Our moral ideas do not work with chisels and hammers. Like trees, they spread their roots in the soil and their branches in the sky, without consulting any architect for their plans."

For religious believers, Tagore's observations, however accurate they might be, are not an excuse to give up the fight to make their religious institutions relevant to contemporary needs. Without significant structural reform and changes of focus, religious institutions will continue, by and large, to pose a threat to genuine peace. Their spiritual basis must be manifested in their institutional outlook. Religious institutions should be participatory, where members and formal representatives are partners in exploring their inner and outer worlds together--all interested parties right there on the edge, participating and learning from one another. The great ambassador of the unity of religions, Swami Vivekananda, made the point powerfully: "[Y]ou must remember that freedom is the first condition of growth. What you do not make free, will never grow. The idea that you can make others grow and help their growth, that you can direct and guide them, always retaining for yourself the freedom of the teacher, is nonsense, a dangerous lie which has retarded the growth of millions and millions of human beings in this world. Let men have the light of liberty. That is the only condition of growth."

For skeptics of religion, the Khudai Khidmitgars are not evidence justifying religion. They can point out, truthfully, that just as religious believers hold fast to wildly diverse opinions on violence and nonviolence, so do the nonreligious. They can argue that religion is not necessary to practice nonviolence. Yet skeptics must acknowledge that religion was not some kind of optional attachment for potent nonviolent movements like the Khudai Khidmitgars; it was integral. When religion identifies, names and connects forces within the mind and society that contribute to peace and justice, it can be an empowering moral force. Skeptics as well as believers can learn from the universal spiritual insights these nonviolent movements and their religions have to offer, even as they discard the rituals, ceremonials, dogmas and creeds.

The Task Ahead

Abdul Ghaffar Khan is not a respected name for many Pakistanis outside of his home province. The level of hatred and contempt for Khan among elder generations, who heard little but sensationalized propaganda about him from despotic rulers, is significant. To an outsider, it may seem surprising that a man and an entire movement who fought bravely and truthfully could be so successfully demonized. However, this kind of aggressive ignorance towards good people who profoundly challenge society is not found only in Pakistan. "Fear not the path of truth for the lack of people walking on it," advises a traditional Arabic saying. These are fighting words, appreciated by anyone who engages in the struggle to make our world a more peaceful place in which to live.

Stakes at the moment are high indeed. Millions of Afghans are on the brink of starvation, and many are surely dying, an entirely avoidable tragedy. Pakistan has nuclear weapons, and while its current leadership is not extreme, it is not inconceivable that extremists could seize power, and decide that they ought to give Americans a dose of their own nuclear medicine. Likewise, there are sure to be many in the Islamic world who fear the use of nuclear weapons by either side.

"The present-day world can only survive the mass production of nuclear weapons through nonviolence," Khan said not long before his death. "The world needs Gandhi's message of love and peace more today than it ever did before, if it does not want to wipe out civilization and humanity itself from the earth's surface."

Khan in Afghanistan

2008-06-12T01:05:00.000-07:00

The biography of Bacha Khan is not a mystery for peoples of Pakistan and India in general and Pukhtuns in particular. Besides a number of good and authentic books on his life and struggles, Bacha Khan himself has written a full size autobiography in Pushto.⁶ Hence, in this paper, I will reveal some reminiscent events related to Bacha Khan's stay in Afghanistan.

At this juncture, we have to admit that we have no record of events in the form of any type of documents. I, as an Assistant-Translator in the Pakistan Embassy in Kabul, had the opportunity to see Bacha Khan frequently. Syed Fida Yunus was then the Second Secretary, Sher Mohammad Khan the Finance Secretary, Dil Jan Khan the First Secretary and Amir Usman the Cultural Attaché in the Embassy. We invariably reported outcomes of my meetings with Bacha Khan to our respective departments in Pakistan. Bacha Khan knew that and had expressed his satisfaction over my approach to him that enabled us to submit first hand and correct information on him to the government.

After release from detention on 30 January 1964, the government of Field Marshal Mohammad Ayub Khan issued a passport to Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan to enable him to go to England for medical treatment. While there, he received an invitation from a group of Pukhtuns in the United States to go there and live with them. The U.S. government disapproved of that. Bacha Khan himself did not want to live far away from his people and homeland. He received an offer from Jamal Abdul Nadir, President of Egypt, to go there. He refused the offer for similar reasons. However, when he received an invitation from King Zahir Shah of Afghanistan through his Prime Minister Dr. Mir Mohammad Yusuf,⁷ he readily accepted that.

The Afghan government accorded a warm welcome to Bacha Khan on his arrival in Kabul on 12 December 1964. A large number of people gathered to aggrandise the show.

Bacha Khan visited different parts of Afghanistan, including remote areas, and addressed the people with his typical message of peace and brotherhood.

Pakistan's One Unit Collapses

In Pakistan, peoples of smaller provinces, Pukhtunkhwa,⁸ Sindh and Balochistan continued opposition to the One-Unit of West Pakistan. When the people of Pakistan revolted against Ayub Khan in 1968, he handed over the government to General Mohammad Yahya Khan Qizilbash from Peshawar.

Through his brother Agha Mohammad Ali, President Yahya Khan established contact with Bacha Khan. Agha Mohammad Ali, who was a Police Officer, assigned Arbab Hidayatullah Khan (Assistant Inspector General of Police) from Landi Arbab, Peshawar, for the mission. Arbab Sahib paid several visits to Bacha Khan. He used to call on Syed Fida Yunus before and after the meetings. Both Syed Fida Yunus and I were living in a big house of Abdul Sattar Shalizai in Karta-e-Parwan, Kabul. There we discussed matters relating to dismemberment of the One-Unit and the restoration of old provinces. We proposed that the States in the Frontier Province should also be annexed to the province. Similarly, the tribal belt should be either annexed to the province or given autonomous state as a separate unit so that the tribesmen could get rid of the system of Political Administration.

In the light of the reports and recommendations of Arbab Hidayatullah Khan, the One-Unit was disintegrated and the States were annexed to the Frontier Province. We learned that there were some elements in the bureaucracy and defense forces of Pakistan who did not want disintegration of the One-Unit. They opposed Yahya Khan to the last moment. Some national dailies in English and Urdu also carried out a hostile campaign.

It was in those days that Shakirullah Bacha of Gujar Garhi, Mardan, had visited Kabul. In his informal visit to the Embassy, some officers gathered around the table to offer him tea. During their chat, Colonel Ahmad Khan of the ISI⁹ asked him about his views on Pukhtunistan. Shakirullah Bacha replied that such queries could best be answered by daily the Nawai Waqt because the office of Pukhtunistan was there.

Bacha Khan was so pleased over the disintegration of the One-Unit that he sought special permission to broadcast a message over radio Kabul and offer his gratitude to President Yahya Khan.

Visit to India

In 1969, Bacha Khan went to India to attend the inaugural ceremony of the centenary of Gandhijee. Before his departure for India, I was directed by Ambassador Hakeem Ahsan to arrange his meeting with Bacha Khan. I accompanied the Ambassador to the residence of Mohammad Ali Lawangin Momand of Kama, an official of the Tourist Department, and held a meeting with Bacha Khan there. The Ambassador conveyed to him a message from President Yahya Khan that he might not say something in India against Pakistan. Bacha Khan received the message with a smile of approval. The house was near the Embassy in Shahr-e-Nao,Kabul. When we left the house, the Ambassador expressed his utmost satisfaction over the response and also uttered something in praise of Bacha Khan.

Another interesting event that took place was the renewal of Bacha Khan's passport. Bacha Khan sent his passport through Mohammad Ali Lawangin for renewal. Then, we found that it was only valid for one year and had long expired. We referred the case to the foreign office. Bacha Khan himself sent a letter in Pushto to Sardar Abdul Rashid, then Interior Minister. The embassy received approval and issued a new passport to him. It was signed by Syed Fida Yunus as the Second Secretary. When the news reached Pakistan that Bacha Khan had gone to India with valid travel documents, Ghulam Mohammad of Lundkhwar, Mardan, and some other enthusiastic rivals demanded of the government to take action against the officials in the Embassy who had issued the passport. Later I came across Ambassador Hakim Ahsan on the stairs while he was at the threshold of his office. The Ambassador smiled at me--an encouraging gesture--and said; "Be prepared for action. Lundkhwar has demanded it!" I replied, "Yes Sir, I know it! But it would be a great event for us to be mentioned in a case of the historical figure of Bacha Khan!" The Ambassador enjoyed it and entered the office with a smile.

The visit of Bacha Khan to India followed a communal riot in Ahmadabad in which Muslims suffered heavy losses at the hands of extremist Hindus. Bacha Khan visited that State. He did not give his bundle of clothes to the local governor or any government official and kept it, as usual, under his arm. The State government had planned to hide the scene from him and conduct his visit to some peaceful Muslim quarters. A Socialist Hindu reached Bacha Khan and told him about the plight of Muslims. Bacha Khan followed him to the camp where a number of displaced Muslims were lying helplessly. There, he asked the ruling junta of India ; "Had Gandhijee taught you to treat your people like this?" He blamed Hindu extremists for persecution of Muslims. In protest, Bacha Khan kept fast for three days. He also addressed the joint session of the Indian Parliament, where he protested against the communal riots.

A large number of admirers of Bacha Khan turned up to have a look at him. The government built a place for Bacha Khan to sit whereby a steady stream of people walked past and paid respect to him.

In celebration of the centenary of Gandhijee, the Indian government in 1969 conferred upon Bacha Khan the Jawaharlal Nehru award for International Understanding with 8 million Indian rupees. Bacha Khan brought and deposited that money in the National Bank of Afghanistan. He informed his party in Pakistan to form a committee to restore publication of his weekly the Pukhtoon. For that purpose, he bequeathed 2.5 acres of his land also. He wished to raise a trust and use that money for the development of the Pushto language and the welfare of the Pukhtun nation.

Some names for the committee were considered, but the committee could not be formed the way Bacha Khan wanted. His nephew (daughter's son) Professor Jehanzeb Niaz--a former member of the teaching staff of Pushto Department, Peshawar University¹⁰--later told me that he was considered to head the trust and my name was also considered to be a member. The money was not given to Pukhtoon magazine at all, and its publication was not restored. It was published occassionally by the National Awami Party / Awami National Party.¹¹

Confusion Created over Donation

In Pakistan, a cyclone swept East Pakistan in 1970 with disastrous effects. President Yahya Khan raised a president fund for succour of the affected people in that wing. One day, I received a telephone call from Bacha Khan. He told me that he wanted to donate some money to the president fund. Being a government employee I could not take such an action on my own. I reported the matter of Charge d' Affair' Shahid Amin. He was of Indian origin. He did not like Bacha Khan. However, he said "OK, better if he gives even ten rupees!" Having got the approval, I contacted Mohammad Ali Lawangin and his brother Mohammad Siddique who was an officer in the National Bank of Afghanistan.

Mohammad Ali Lawangin, Mohammad Siddique and Faqir Baezai, sons of Mohammad Hassan Khan Momand of Kama, served Bacha Khan devotedly. Bacha Khan also loved them. Siddique and I visited Bacha Khan. He disclosed that he wanted to give five thousand dollars as a donation. Siddique and I considered the matter there and decided to take the cheque from Bacha Khan, cash it in dollars, exchange dollars with Pakistan currency at Shahzada market and pay those proceeds to the embassy. When we informed Bacha Khan, he wanted to know the purpose of that process. We explained to him that official rate of one dollar was five Pakistani rupees whereas it was eleven in the market. Bacha Khan expressed astonishment over the difference between the official and the market rates. However, he allowed us to do as we liked. Hence, we deposited 55,000 rupees in the president fund on behalf of Bacha Khan. The embassy issued a receipt for that.

Meanwhile in Pakistan a vicious circle of the so-called patriots led by Z.A. Sulehri tried to create misunderstanding between Bacha Khan and the embassy. Sulehri was then editor of the daily Pakistan, which carried inside single-column news that Bacha Khan had donated 25,000 rupees to the president fund. Arrangement was made to show that news to Bacha Khan, because it was given such an insignificant place that a common reader would not find it. It was clear that someone from the embassy might have leaked out the information that Bacha Khan had given the cheque for five thousand dollars.

Bacha Khan was confused to see that news. He demanded that the embassy return thirty thousand rupees to him. The embassy wrote to the foreign office and the information ministry to issue another statement with a mention of the actual amount, but all in vain. There was no clarification. Bacha Khan therefore insisted on reimbursement. The state of goodwill was thus poisoned by vested interests with their evil designs. Meanwhile, Khan Abdul Wali Khan¹² visited Kabul. I told him all about the matter. What followed was not known to us, but Bacha Khan did not remind us again.

Visit of Qayum Khan

During the campaign for general elections in Pakistan, I attended a party at the Tribal Affairs Department in Kabul. The President of Tribal Affairs Masoud Pohanyar and Bacha Khan were there. I joined them. The atmosphere was quite cordial. During the chat, Pohanyar mentioned to Bacha Khan, "Qayum Khan is coming!" Bacha Khan replied "let him come!" And there was no further discussion on the matter.

Qayum Khan visited Kabul for three days, but we could not meet him. The government accommodated him at some unknown place. Another Muslim League stalwart from Balochistan, Mohammad Khan Jogezai, had also visited Kabul in those days. It was generally believed that Qayum Khan and Mohammad Khan Jogezai sought the blessing and assistance of the Afghan government in general elections. It was later explained by Khan Abdul Wali Khan in a meeting with the Ambassador of Pakistan at his residence in Kabul that the Afghan government would not liked to have seen the National Awami Party win the elections in Pukhtunkhwa, because she would then have no point to continue her propaganda for Pukhtunistan.

Seeking Peace in East Pakistan

When riots erupted in East Pakistan after the general elections, Bacha Khan offered his services for mediation. He proposed to the embassy that he would go back to Pakistan to lead a Jirgah of a few elders from Punjab, Sindh, NWFP and Balochistan to meet Mujib-ur-Rahman and settle the dispute through negotiations. The embassy conveyed his messages to foreign office but there was no response. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto of the Pakistan Peoples Party and Qayum Khan of the Muslim League, supported by some Army officers, were determined to grab power, although the majority had voted for the Awami Leauge of Mujib-ur-Rahman. Jamaat Islami exploited the Urdu speaking community of Indian refugees to form al-Badr and al-Shams militant groups to terrorise Bengalis. When all these strategies failed to cow down Mujib, Pakistan Army launched an operation in East Pakistan. What then happened is an open secret.

Problems on the Border

At that critical juncture, some tribal Jirgahs called on Bacha Khan that they were prepared to fight for liberation if they were supplied arms. Bacha Khan advised them not to create any problem on the western border for Pakistan. The Jirgahs also met King Zahir Shah who took a similar stand. The King passed on a message to Pakistan's Ambassador that he would not allow any disturbance from that side. The anti-Pakistan propaganda, continuing in the name of Pukhtunistan, was also tuned down.

Thoughts on Pukhtunistan

Normally whenever I visited Bacha Khan at the Dar-ul-Aman guest house, some admirers were there. The majority of them comprised activists from the Afghan Millat and the Parcham faction of Peoples Democratic Party of Pakistan. Bacha Khan always stressed the need of unity, brotherhood and peace. He avoided discussion on the political situation in Pakistan. It was only Pukhtunistan Day,¹³ following independence-day, that Bacha Khan led a procession from the Pukhtunistan Square to the Ghazi Stadium where he delivered a speech.¹⁴ He criticised Pakistan's government for having usurped rights of nationalities and demanded autonomous status for Pukhtunistan (NWFP). In not a single speech did he express any desire for a separate and independent state. His speech was broadcast over Kabul radio that evening. This was a permanent feature during his stay in Kabul.

In a casual meeting with me, Bacha Khan confided that Pukhtuns' economy and education were backward and their country was landlocked. They could not live a better life in a separate state. He therefore demanded due rights for them within Pakistan.

Role of the Intelligence Services

On one occasion I was embarrassed when, on my arrival, Bacha Khan asked me if I would like to see Mardhula Sarabai, a veteran socialist leader from India. Hesitantly I replied--yes. Then Bacha Khan directed me to go upstairs. It was the first time that I explored the first floor of the guest house where an old lady in typical Pukhtun dress of shirt and trousers with Peshawari chapli¹⁵ was standing with Anwarul Haq Gran. Still smart in old age with silver-white hair, she was graceful, cheerful and upright. When we exchanged greetings, she turned to Gran and exclaimed, "How fluent do Afghans speak Urdu!" Gran, hailing from Dir district and already known to me, laughed and told her that I am a Pakistani and was serving in the Pakistan Embassy. "Does Pakistan's Embassy keep contact with Bacha Khan!," she expressed with surprise enhanced by that revelation. Gran introduced me to her in clear and plain words that I was working for an intelligence agency of Pakistan. Sarabai appreciated that such a direct approach being used by workers of intelligence agencies would avoid and remove many misunderstandings. Gran told her that Bacha Khan was well aware of my position and had expressed satisfaction with my contacts with him that led to improvement of relations between him and the government of Pakistan.

Selfish People

One day, Syed Fida Yunus and I went from Kabul to Jalalabad. Accompanied by Pakistan's Consul at Jalalabad, Rab Nawaz Khan, we visited Bacha Khan at his residence at Sheesham Bagh. When we reached there, Bacha Khan was busy in his home garden. He received us and led us to his drawing room--a simple room with ordinary furniture. His personal servant Ahmad Kaka placed some fresh fruit before us. We discussed the affairs in East Pakistan. Bacha Khan repeated his proposal that Pakistan should not use force there and try to settle the matter through negotiations. During discussion, Bacha Khan mentioned that there were some selfish people who did not like peace in the country. Rab Nawaz Khan asked him in a way of satire, "Bacha Khan! You blame what you call the selfish people. But if Pakistan were destroyed, wouldn't these selfish people suffer humiliation! Will they like it?" Bacha Khan just smiled to say "The selfish has no sight!" It means that selfish people are driven so rashly by their selfish designs that they do not see the gloom and doom ahead.

Return from Exile

Following the general elections and bifurcation of Pakistan, in 1971 the National Awami Party and Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Islam formed coalition governments in the NWFP and Balochistan. Governor Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo of Balochistan and Governor Arbab Sikandar Khan of NWFP were from the National Awami Party. Bizenjo invited Bacha Khan to return to Pakistan via Balochistan. Before his return, Bacha Khan went on a tour of western parts of Afghanistan. He was somewhere in Zabul or Hilmand, when Ambassador Gen. Rakhman Gul asked me to go and tell Bacha Khan that Bhutto did not like him to return to Pakistan. I was surprised. I had to obey the order. But I tried to tell the Ambassador that such a message to Bacha Khan from a government functionary would annoy him. The Ambassador wrote back to the government. Then Ajmal Khattak was deputed to convey the message. Arbab Sikandar Khan sharply reacted to the stand of Bhutto and sent a delegation to Kabul to invite Bacha Khan. The delegation included Afzal Khan Lala, then Information Minister, and Maulana Badshah Gul from Akora Khattak. They were accommodated at the Kabul Hotel. I had a chance to have my first meeting with Afzal Khan Lala there.

On the 25^th of December 1972,¹⁶ Bacha Khan returned to Peshawar. A large number of people, mostly young activists with red flags of the Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan, accompanied him to Torkham. Similarly, a large number of Khudai Khidmatgars in red uniforms and carrying red flags from Pukhtunkhwa also converged at Torkham. The chain was lifted and the procession from Peshawar greeted their great leader in the foot of Shamshad hill on the Afghan side. Thousands of young flag bearers spread over in the foot of the hill to display fluttering flags. Khan Abdul Wali Khan was also there.

Return to Afghanistan

Bacha Khan went again to Kabul on the 2^nd of April 1978, just a few weeks before the Saur Revolution that took place (26 April 1978). He stayed at his residence at Jalalabad. He invited Fazal Rahim Saqi to help him compile his autobiography. In 1980, he went from Kabul to Delhi for medical treatment. Sheikh Abdullah extended an invitation to him to visit Kashmir. Bacha Khan accepted the invitation but could not go there.

Bacha Khan visited the Soviet Union from the 1^st of September to the 31^st of October 1980 for medical treatment. He returned to Peshawar on 2^nd April 1982.

The Government of India awarded Bacha Khan the prestigious Bharat Ratna Award in 1987.

For much of 1987, Bacha Khan was almost unconscious in bed for lengthy periods. He was in India for a time and then at Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar where he breathed his last. Bacha Khan died aged 98 on the 20^th of January, 1988, and was buried in Jalalabad on the 22^nd of January. He had spent 30 years of his life in prison, and fought against oppression, intolerance and violence for more than 70

Ghaffar Khan : The Siddhartha of Hashtnagar

2008-06-12T00:21:00.001-07:00

You are welcome to the peace museum on the lands of the proud pathans (2). This is the museum where Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan – the Siddhartha of Hashtnagar – lives. Have you ever heard of him ?”

Born in 1890 (3) in Hashtnagar, now known as Asghatnager or “eight towns” in the village of Utmanzi , Ghaffar Khan is perhaps the greatest Pathan of all times. Undoubtedly, he is the most prominent apostle of nonviolence after Gandhi in modern India and one of the outstanding nonviolent leaders of the twentieth century. However, awareness about his life, nonviolent struggle and sufferings is still rather limited and his remarkable contribution to peace is still widely unrecognized. It is only in the recent years when the protracting war and violence in Afghanistan since the entry of the Soviet troops in Kabul in December 1979 and unending upheavals and acts of terrorism especially in the Pakhtun belt cutting across Afghan – Pakistan borders that the post 9/11 panicky world is turning to him for salvation. Being alarmed because of the upsurge of Muslim anger and militancy around the world, the concerned power centers, leading international research institutes focusing on Islam, Muslim societies, terrorism and on peace and nonviolence look at Ghaffar Khan as the saviour of the future.

They also look at him with amazement and disbelief :

How can a Muslim be an apostle of peace and nonviolence ?
How can some one from amongst the Pathans - a people widely known for centuries for valour, warriorism and savagery - be nonviolent ?
How could he raise the soldiers of faith and nonviolence in a region frequently trampled by the armies passing through the Khyber Pass ?
Isn’t it all mythology woven around the Khan ?

These queries are important and need to be attended to, because the misperceptions are widespread and there is a dearth of historical account throwing light on the other past which was always there and which is nowhere. For instance, it should be noted that the history of the events taking place at the Khyber Pass and in the adjoining areas around it is not merely a history of the Aryans descending upon the fertile northern plains in 1500 B.C. and overwhelming the native Dravidian population, the Persians under Darius crossing into the Punjab in the 6th century B.C. to annex a yet another province to the Achaemenian Empire, the armies of Alexander the Great marching through the pass in 326 B.C. to reach the plains of the Indus, the Scythians , white Huns, Seljuks, Tartars, Mongols, Sassanians, Turks, Moghuls and Durranis making successive inroads into the territory beyond Peshawar valley and Indus (4).

The history of the Khyber Pass and beyond is clearly much more than all this. The region can really boast of its grand heritage of peace and nonviolence. Banished from history for long, the narratives of this heritage need to be recalled not only to explain the disinheritance of intolerance and violence by Ghaffar Khan, a pious and practicing Muslim and a Pathan to the core, but also to strongly suggest that a peaceful Muslim society, even a peaceful Pakistani society, is possible.

History, in fact, whispers at every nook and corner of Hashtnagar, the birth place of Ghaffar Khan and a tract in Charsadda tehsil of Peshawar district comprising a strip of territory that extends ten miles eastward from the Swat river and stretches from the hills in the north to the Kabul river in the South. The archaeological site having a cluster of imposing mounds in Charsadda, 30 kilometers north east of Peshawar is identified with Pushkalavati (the Lotus city), the ancient capital of Gandhara during the days before the Kushan emperors transferred the seat of government to Peshawar. During the Ghandhara period, one may point out, Charsadda, Taxila and Swat were the main centres of culture, trade and learning and Taxila also had a grand University attracting students and scholars from near and far away places including China.

Hashtnagar and its adjoining areas stretching to Charsadda, Takhtabai, Dir, Swat , Shehhaz Garhi, Jamal Garhi, Chota Lahore, Hund, Attock and Taxila and comprising Peshawar valley were the seat of various flourishing civilizations and were comprehensively influenced by Buddhism in particular. A culture of peace was there and it flowered in these territories and beyond and flourished for centuries.

If one looks for, one may be dazzled by the images of the gentle and peaceful reign and rule of King Asoka - the peace king of India - as governor of the land, mushrooming of the monasteries teaching and preaching love, tolerance and peace in the areas where Gandhara civilization once flourished. Then there are the images of the dancing, laughing, colorfully dressed women and children and the wandering and singing Buddhist monks and their followers that blink, blight and glitter like neon signs in the darkness of historical narratives of wars and warriorism woven around the Khyber Pass and beyond. History whispers to me again : “These monasteries, stupas, trading, dancing, learning places are not mere images. These are real things. Just have a feel of these. Move around with me in the peace museum and see for yourself this world of peace which Ghaffar Khan had inherited ».

And I move around with the past which was always there and which is nowhere and with great amazement I look at a gigantic stupa emerging from behind the Khyber Pass, from just outside the Ganj Gate in the old city of Peshawar, a stupa built by the great Kushan King Kaishka I to house the relics of Buddha, a stupa which was “probably the tallest building of the world at that time ». (5) In amazement, I also see the four statues of lord Buddha at the base of an enormous peepal (banyon) tree on the bank of River Bara near the confluence where today stand Bazar-i-Bazzazan (cloth market) and Batair Bazar (bird sellers’ market) in the heart of Peshawar city (6). Moreover, I see hundreds of colourful monasteries and stupas preaching peace and nonviolence and numerous monuments and rock pillars jewelled with Buddhist teachings, principle and code of conduct. For centuries, the religion of the people of this region was Buddhism. Little wonder that Ghaffar Khan emerged out of the shadows of these monasteries, stupus and other learning places as a remarkable apostle of nonviolence.

His unshakeable adherence to nonviolence may also be understood in the light of his family background. He was the fourth child of Behram Khan, a rich landlord and a highly respected Khan of his village. Writing about his father, D.G. Tendulkar observes in his excellent biography of the Khan :

“He had neither pride nor vanity of being a Chief Khan of Hashtnagar, of Muhammadzai clan. He was humble, God – fearing and self-restrained. He was so trustworthy that the poor people would come and leave all their savings in his keeping, for his word was as good as his bond. He had many friends and no enemies. He had no feuds - a unique distinction for a Khan - because he had forgiven all his enemies. He knew no revenge. He believed that there was no dishonour in being deceived, it lay in deceiving. He was a man of his word and was so transparently truthful that none dared to disbelieve or contradict him. He never told a lie, he had not known how to. When there was any village feud he took the side of the underdog. He never believed in dancing attendance upon those in authority, but they held him in awe.” (7)

Tendulkar adds :

“Both the father and the mother were unlettered, they lived more in the world of the spirit than of the flesh. The mother would often sit down after her namaz to meditate in silence. She cooked food in a big pot and distributed it among the poor neighbours. Though there was a retinue of servants in the house, the father would insist on carrying a basketful of nan on his head and a platter of cooked vegetable to his village Hujra for travelers passing through. “The traveling visitors, unknown and uncared for, are veritable guests of God” he would say, “and that is why I like to carry the food for them.” (8)

The influence that the family exercised on the religious thinking and practice of Ghaffar Khan was doubtless crucial. Equally significant was the influence of political thinking and action of his forefathers. Nonviolent activism was an important feature of family tradition and despite belonging to the privileged and political elite of the region, the elders and leaders of the family espoused the cause of the poor and challenged the power of the powerful. Though not unfriendly with the British officials, Khan’s father, Behram Khan was critical of the Pathans’ crossing all limits to seek the favour of the British and “not without a sense of shame, he used to recall how his elder brother served the British by commanding the military guard of the Charsadda Treasury.” (9)

Ghaffar Khan learnt the early lessons of history and politics from his father and learnt more from the narratives of the heroics of his forefathers. The very fact that his grand father, Saifullah Khan, always sided with his oppressed brethren whenever the British had any clash with the tribes or tried to subjugate them had profound impact upon him. What also made him proud and prepared him to endure all kinds of sufferings and not to compromise on principles was the shining example of his father’s grand father, Obaidullah Khan, who was hanged by the Durranis, the rulers, for his enlightenment and patriotism. (10)

Later Ghaffar Khan’s involvement in Indian politics, his closeness to and emotional attachment with Gandhi, his courageous nonviolent movement against the British Raj, his fierce and relentless struggle for democracy, justice, equal rights and equitable power and resource sharing among all the provinces and peoples of Pakistan and his enormous capacity to suffer for the causes important to him steeled him into a fearless non-compromising crusader of nonviolence.

How relevant is Khan’s nonviolent struggle for the contemporary world and especially for the Muslim world where violence abound ? This question came to my mind when I was wandering in amazement in the peace museum of history. The museum was sparking with the narratives of his life and struggle and highlighting the importance he attached to education, peace potentials of religion, place of women in society, freedom and honour and peace and nonviolence in his struggle during the British Raj and after.

To begin with, by any count or criterion, Ghaffar Khan was a man of the future. He was the son of unlettered parents and he himself had rather modest formal education (11). But he strived to promote literacy in the Frontier province in extremely challenging circumstances. These were, indeed, very difficult times. Very modest educational facilities were available on the eve of the twentieth century. There was no university in the province and the only college, Edward Mission College at Peshawar, was affiliated to Punjab University at Lahore. The number of Matriculates in the whole province was only 15 in 1891 and 71 in 1903 and hardly a dozen schools were there. Worse still, the obscurantist religious forces were then deadly opposed to mission schools and teaching of English in particular. “Any parent sending his son to the Mission Schools will be excommunicated” was the fatwa of the Mullahs when such schools were opened. Later the position was somewhat modified : “Let the boys go to school but be ware lest they learn English, for English is the language of infidelity and will certainly destroy their souls”. And still latter : “Let the boys read English, so long as they do not read the Christian scriptures, for the Christians have tampered with these books and it is no longer lawful for the Muslims to read them”. (12) Fearing their loss of political clout, the Mullahs opposed the opening of modern schools, ferociously campaigned against the promotion of critical temper and creative thinking. They encouraged their Madressah pupils and others to recite the following verses loudly and ardently in open areas and market places :

Sabaq de madrase wai. Para de paise wai
Janat Ke bae zai navi. Dozakh Ke bai ghase wahi

“Those who learn at school, they do for money. They will have no place in heaven and will find themselves in hell”. (13)

In this context, critically damaging was the unholy alliance between the British colonial government and its agents in the NWFP and the Mullahs. Being apprehensive of the liberating effect of modern education upon a restive and defiant population, the British discouraged and resisted the opening of schools in the province, encouraged the Mullahs to vilify modern education on religious pretext. The government became far more ruthless with the arrival of Lord Curzon as the new Viceroy of India in 1897. In swift succession, a series of measures were taken by Delhi to spread fear and force obedience. The Frontier was put directly under Viceroy’s control so that crucial decisions could be taken swiftly ; hill tribes were compulsorily separated from those living in the settled districts to complete the vivisection of the Pathans ; a standing army of ten thousand men was kept to guard the province along a two hundred mile perimeter, from Malakand in the north to the southern tip of Waziristan on the Indian border ; more forts were built and railway lines and roads were laid down for the swift movement of the army to disturbed areas ; a six–thousand man police force was maintained to maintain peace ; a series of restrictive laws known as Frontier Crimes Regulations were enacted which could be applied to “transport” or send a man to a foreign penal colony for life without court or trial ; and justice was put in the hands of the political agent or pro – British landlords invited to hear the cases (14). On 9 November 1901, the North West Frontier Province was created and reduced into a virtual armed garrison or police state.

Such were the conditions of NWFP when Ghaffar Khan opened a school in his village Utmanzai. “Neither he nor Curzon could have imagined that some day the small school would help to undermine the Viceroy’s plans”. (15)

The opening of the school in Utmanzai in 1910 proved to be a turning point in Frontier’s politics. The village of the Khan soon became the centre of nonviolent action and a seat of people’s power. It grew into a sort of political academy teaching and preaching peace and nonviolence and stressing the importance of modern education. Utmanzai also emerged as a challenger challenging the British government in Frontier and the Mullahs and other collaborators in the region. Subsequent developments further alarmed the British and the collaborators. The Khan was not contended with the opening of one school only. He wanted to open more and moved around in the length and breadth of the province campaigning in favour of establishing schools and enhancing political consciousness of the downtrodden masses. His candid discussions with the powerless gave a direction to the people. Not much later, he began campaigns for the empowerment of women, for equal rights for all and for building up a nonviolent army of God and directly challenged the power of the colonial lords, the local feudal lords and the Mullahs. The British responded by unleashing a poisonous propaganda against the Khan and his mission, threatening and coercing him, putting restrictions on his movement from place to place, bribing the teachers to leave the schools or threatening them of dire consequences if they continued to serve the schools, and frequently throwing him into prison. But Ghaffar Khan, like the mountains under whose shadows he had grown up, remained undaunted and did’nt bow down. He went on with his movement for freedom, spread of literacy, enhancement of political and social awareness and for equal rights for all including the women.

Ghaffar Khan was a great champion of women’s rights. He urged upon his people to recognize the value and importance of women as human beings and as equal partners in the society and fought against the traditions, customs and laws which discriminated against women. He openly expressed his displeasure about the Pathan custom of accepting money in return for giving the hand of their girl in marriage. He often referred to his own marriage. Almost a century ago, in 1912, he got married, but his wife’s father did not demand any money. Ghaffar Khan often praised his father–in–law in public for being “the first Khan not to accept money for the hands of his daughter” and also for making a will bequeathing a full share of inheritance to his female relatives. Besides projecting the modernistic approach of the Khan towards social issues including women issues, such examples clearly impacted upon the social and political consciousness of the male–dominated Pathan society (16). The approach, moreover, had a transformative effect as he often referred to Islamic teachings in this context.

He, for instance, criticized gender discrimination and said : “Inferiority and superiority depend on deeds and not gender… God has created men and women to be partners in the development of civilization. They are the two wheels of humanity’s carriage which cannot run on one wheel alone”. (17) Again, addressing a large gathering of women at Bhaizai, he declared : “God makes no distinction between men and women. If someone can surpass another, it is only through good deeds and morals. If you study history, you will see that there were many scholars and poets amongst women. It is a grave mistake we have made in degrading women… In the Holy Koran, you have an equal share with men. You are today oppressed because we men have ignored the commands of God and the prophet. Today we are the followers of custom and we oppress you. But thank God that we have realized that our gain and loss, progress and downfall are common.” (18)

The Khan strongly advocated female education and bravely confronted the centuries old hardened male attitude towards the issue. He relentlessly fought for a change in such attitudes and often pointed out that Islam had made learning obligatory on men and women alike. He also saw to it that his daughter not only goes to the school, but also goes to Europe for higher studies. He, in fact, faced opposition within his own family when his daughter was being sent to the school. This was in spite of the fact that the school to which she was going was in the house of a local Khan and his own wife taught there.

Besides advocating female education, Ghaffar Khan openly encouraged the Pathan women to step from the medieval world behind the veil and take active interest in public life and the women actively and positively responded to the call of their liberator. They began attending his public meetings and the number grew with the passage of time. In such meetings, they could be seen seated on the roofs and around the venue and taking active interest in the proceedings. At a special meeting of women held at Lundkhawar near Mardan , the female participants presented a letter of appreciation to Ghaffar Khan, which among other things, included the following verse :

“Should young men not keep up with you, Fakhr-e-Afghana Don’t worry, we girls will see you through victory.” (19)

The women actively supported the Khudai Khidmatgars’20 struggle. “It made”, the Khan recalls, “a big impact on young and old, men, women and children alike… Girls had also made themselves red clothes (colour of the dress of Khudai Khidmatgars) and learnt poems by heart, which they recited to other women–folk. They read Pakhtun (Khan’s monthly Journal) with eagerness. When Pakhtun arrived, girls would gather around. One girl would read it aloud, while the others listened. In this way the Khudai Khidmatgars aroused interest in reading newspapers”. (21) Indeed, so profound was the impact of Khudai Khidmagars movement on women that they were no more afraid of death for their cause. Highlighting the point, Ghaffar Khan writes in his autobiography that once the colonial polic opened fire on a public meeting of the Khudai Khidmatgars held at Utmanzai. The firing was so intense that men began running in all direction for their life. At such a time, a young Pathan woman, sister of Rab Nawaz, ran towards the place where firing was incessant and intense. The men in flight from the meeting called her to stop, not to go where the firing was taking place and asked as to why was she going towards the place where firing was incessant. The young women shouted back that she was going into the jaws of death because the male Pathans were so coward that they were running away to save their life and they had no consideration for the honour of the Pathan. Tremendously moved because of the valour of the woman, the men in flight stopped running and then moved towards the meeting place. They were no more afraid of police firing and death. They encircled the British police and dictated it to accept their demands. (22)

Such was the power of the Pakhtun women, who were encouraged by Ghaffar Khan to fight for their equal rights and fight with the Pakhtun men to achieve freedom from colonial yoke. Since the rise of the Talibans (23) in Afghanistan and Pakistan in the 1990s, these very Pakhtun women faced the grim prospect of their forced return to the medieval world of degradation, disempowerment, ignorance and gross neglect. Once again, they were ambushed by the dark forces of religious extremists and they still are. Also under assault today is the nonviolence – teaching and peace – promoting religion of Islam and the fully armed Talibans and their supporters near the Khyber Pass and beyond refuse to see the giant figure of the Siddhartha of Hashtnager emerging out of the stupa built by the great Kushan King Kanishka I at Peshawar.

But standing at the Pass, I see him and hear him clearly, who tearfully says that violence and terrorism committed in the name of Islam by the Talibans and other terror–striking forces and their war lords has nothing to do with the faith of Islam and the glory of the faith cannot be achieved through human–killing and violence.

“A devout Muslim” observes Easwaran in his excellent biography of the Khan, “he showed in his life a face of Islam which non–Islamic countries seldom see, proving that within the scope of Islam exists a noble alternative to violence.”} (24) The Khan was, indeed, a devout Muslim. Languishing in jails or rendered house arrest during the British Raj and in independent Pakistan for over thirty years, attending and addressing numerous political meetings, conversing with fellow Pathans, with the opponents, with Pakistani officials and others, moving for days, months and years in the villages, towns and cities, he remembered to say his prayers five times a day and performed other obligatory commandants as well. He also used to read the Quran regularly. However, he never hated other religions or the followers of other faiths. He knew Islam as a faith of love and tolerance. He said :

“One great weakness amongst us people of Hindustan is that we are unable to tolerate in others something that is forbidden according to our own creed. We hold the same expectations of others as we do of those of our own faith. We do not think - if something is forbidden in our religion, it is forbidden for our co–religionists, not for others, who share the same faith”.

He added :

“The truth is, all revealed religions have come to us from God. They have come in order to bring unity, love and amity to the world, so that people should make life easy for others and serve God’s creatures. It is incumbent upon followers of religion to rid the world of hate and intolerance. They should imbue God’s creatures with a spirit of love and mutual regard, so that they may offer one another a helping hand.” (25)

Ghaffar Khan was not only a preacher of religious harmony and co–flourishing ; he practiced what he preached during the times when communal conflict and religious hatred was already spreading in British India. Way back in 1930, when he was in Gujrat jail, he worked to promote inter–faith harmony and requested the jail authorities to arrange for the teaching of Quran for the Hindus and Gita for the Muslims. He used to give lecturers on the Quran there and a Hindu Pandit Jagat Ram Haryanni used to give the lessons of Gita (26). He himself often used to read Gita. Throughout his life, he paid respect to all the religions including Hinduism. Little wonder that when he was with Gandhi at Wardah, he used to join the latter in daily prayers and also in Tulsi Ramayan reading every morning (27).

As a matter of fact, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, a very devout Muslim, was of the view that though different religions pursue different paths, they approach the same and only God. As such, all religions are the religions of the same God, who is also Muslims’ God. He therefore belonged to all religions and had absolutely no problem in identifying himself with all of them and strived to promote religious harmony during very difficult times. His relevance to the contemporary times, when inter – faith mistrust and conflict is on the rise, is clearly very much there. Rajmohan Gandhi observes :

“We saw that Ghaffar Khan the Muslim thought that “prayer in whatever language or form was addressed to one and the same God”. His daily life demonstrated this belief in the unity of humanity. We noticed the joy with which he showed the Buddha statues of Bamiyan to Kamaluayan Bajaj and Madalasa Agarwal , statues that the Taliban would later destroy. Comfortable with his Hindu friends, comrades and colleagues, Badshah Khan we saw, also loved westerners and Christians like the Wigram brothers and was even able to forgive a white political foe who had blocked some of his plans, Olaf Caroe.” (28)

Besides his universalist approach toward religion, his application of Islamic values into the making of a nonviolent Pakhtun society and in his struggle against the ruthless oppressors in British India and later in Pakistan is highly relevant for the transformation of contemporary world, especially that of the Muslim societies. The approach is all the more relevant in the sense that it was not merely conceptualized and theorized, but also fully applied when Ghaffar Khan introduced the Khudai Khidmatgars in his nonviolent political action against the British and transformed a scattered, somewhat disoriented and rather violent people into well–disciplined, courageous, nonviolent political activists. The task was not easy. The Khan was aware of the difficulties. He, once, said :

“The history of my people is full of victories and tales of heroism, but there are drawbacks too. Internal feuds and personal jealousies have always snatched away the gains achieved through vast sacrifices. They were dispersed only because of their own inherent defects, never by any outside power - for who could oppose them on the battlefield” (29)

Furthermore, there were the Pathan customs and traditions glorifying warriorism, blood–letting and revenge and confusing peace-seeking with shameful acceptance of defeat, Referring to these features of Pathan society, Abdul Ghani Khan, a renowned Pakhtun poet and philosopher and the eldest son of Ghaffar Khan writes about the Pathan :

“His violent nature, strong body and tender heart make a very unstable combination for living, but an ideal one for poetry”.

{“One day he goes out and never comes back. He has laughed his way into a bullet that was fired by another of his own blood and race. His wife inherits from him a moment of joy, two sons, and a lifetime of sorrow. She hangs up his rifle and sitar for his sons. She learns to hide her tears when she hears a love song in the evening.

And when the son grows up, “He must shoot. He has no alternative. Revenge and Death. Death and Revenge - always and forever.

“The Coward dies”, the boy’s mother tells him, “but his shrieks live long after”. So the boy learns not to shriek. He is shown dozens of things dearer than life so that he will not mind either dying or killing. He is forbidden colourful clothes or exotic music, for they weaken the arm and soften the eye. He is taught to look at the hawk and forget the nightingale. It is a perpetual surrender - an eternal giving up of man to man and to their wise follies.”} (30)

A Pathan himself, Ghaffar Khan knew that such customs and traditions were promoting a culture of violence. He was also aware of the fact that deep down, every Pathan was very religious and could be very easily provoked into any sort of violent act in the name of Islam. He therefore worked for the spread of literacy and promotion of enlightened thinking and told his people about nonviolent Islam, which Islam really is. Frequently referring to the Quranic verses and Hadith and Islamic traditions, he pointed out that “the Quran teaches Jihad, which in its real sense means to struggle for the welfare and advancement of its follower.” (31) “The Holy prophet Muhammad (PBUH)”, he told his people, “came into the world and taught us that that man is a Muslim who never hurts any one by word or deed, but who works for the benefit and happiness of God’s creatures. Belief in God is to love one’s fellow men.” (32)

Again, he made it abundantly clear that his concept of nonviolence was directly derived from Islam and observed: “There is nothing surprising in a Muslim or a Pashtun like me subscribing to the creed of nonviolence. It is not a new creed. It was followed 1400 years ago by the Holy Prophet (PBUH) all the time he was in Mecca, but we had so forgotten it that when Gandhi placed it before us, we though he was spousing a novel creed." (33)

Standing at the Khyber Pass and listening to the voice of the unheard past, a past which was always there and which is nowhere, I wondered as to why only the armies of violence led by the Aryans, Greeks, Persians, Seljuks, Mongols and others have a prominent space in our history and in our memory and why were the torch bearers of nonviolence banished. After all, many of these invading armies which rattled around, conquered territories, murdered innocent human beings, enslaved people and trampled and destroyed the colourful sites of peace once blooming in the Lotus City - Pushkalavati (ancient capital of Gandhara before the capital was transferred to Peshawar). The heritage of peace is housed in the peace museum of history, which also proudly displays the colourful images of the army of nonviolence singing love songs, reciting verses from religious books, chanting freedom slogans and marching around like clusters of red roses on the move.

This was the unarmed and unharming army of nonviolence, popularly known as Khudai Khidmatgars or servants of God raised in 1930 by Ghaffar Khan. It was not a kind of godless, Bolshevik army. Neither was it a prisoner of rituals, even when it was firmly rooted in religion and derived strength from Islamic teachings and tradition. It was a unique movement against slavery and colonialism and was a living embodiment of Islam as a powerful but peaceful mass movement for political and social change. It called upon its adherents to take an oath which is unique in the context of Pathan history and tradition. Any Pathan aspiring to become a Khudai Khidmatgar had to declare on solemn oath :

I am a Khudai Khidmatgar; and as God needs no service, I shall serve Him by serving His creatures selflessly.
I shall never use violence, I shall not retaliate or take revenge, and I shall forgive anyone who indulges in oppression and excesses against me.
I shall not be a party to any intrigue, family feuds and enmity and I shall treat every Pakhtun as my brother and comrade.
I shall give up evil customs and practices.
I shall live a simple life, do good and refrain from wrong doing.
I shall develop good character and cultivate good habits.
I shall not lead an idle life.
I shall expect no rewards for my services.
I shall be fearless and prepared for any sacrifice.

It was not an ordinary oath to be broken when so wished. It was an extraordinary oath as it was meant for the feuding Pathans. “For a Pathan” Easwaren points out, “an oath is not a small matter. He does not enter into a vow easily because once given, a Pathan’s word cannot be broken. Even his enemy can count on him to keep his word at the risk of his own life. Non–violence was the heart of the oath and of the organization. It was directed not only against the violence of the British rule but against the pervasive violence of Pathan life.” (34)

Furthermore, while the oath clearly suggested that the Khudai Khidmatgars was more concerned in transforming the Pakhtun members into good Muslims, good Pakhtuns and good human beings, the organization was meant to be much more than a mere social advocacy agency. It could’nt have been. For its founding father, nonviolence was far more than a mere passive creed. He made it clear when he said :

“People have an extraordinary idea about what is meant by nonviolence. A lot of propaganda is made about this principle and there is a great deal of misunderstanding amongst people regarding what is meant by it. Some said that it involves turning the other check when you have already been slapped on one check. Some said that it means one must lie down and let others walk over you, or remain lying down and let others beat you up, without moving your hands or feel in the process. Some remarked that the Pakhtuns are a brave and powerful people, but Ghaffar Khan wants to turn them cowards. They used to say all sorts of things. The fact of the matter is that nonviolence is a great force in itself, just as violence is a force. Non–violence has its own army, in the same way as there are armies of violence. The difference is that the weapon of nonviolence is preaching (tabligh) while the weapon of violence is the gun. Nonviolence breeds love, endeavour and valour in people whereas violence engenders hate, fear and cowardice… There is no defeat in nonviolence but there is in violence… Violence is an easy path to follow, but it is extremely difficult to tread the path of nonviolence. It is easy enough to return a slap with a slap but it is very difficult to control oneself when one has been slapped.” (35)

With firm belief in the power of nonviolence, Ghaffar Khan launched the Khudai Khidmatgars organization as a powerful movement of the powerless against the ruthless oppressors to achieve freedom, equality and dignity. His was a nonviolent political action projecting itself as Islam in action. Led by a fearless political leader who was a pious and practicing Muslim, who was not at all interested in small political or material gains and who was always prepared to suffer imprisonment, banishment and hardships for the sake of the causes he espoused, the movement rapidly grew in strength. The Pakhtuns joined this movement in thousands and following their leader, exhibited tremendous courage, spirit of sacrifice and willingness to suffer. Indeed, they suffered the terrorism of the powerful with great dignity. Their dwellings were frequently burnt down, the members of the movement were often beaten, tortured and sent to jails ; their properties were seized ; and many were shot in cold blood. They, however, remained true to their vow of nonviolence and never resorted to violence, which the British often desperately desired.

The history of the Khudai Khidmatgars movement is full of events and situations where the powerless triumphed over the powerful, but the limited space of this paper does not permit an enumeration of all of them. Here, however, the encounter between the violent and nonviolent forces at Qissa Khawani Bazaar in Peshawar in 1930 may be discussed in some detail. This was the time when India was in a ferment. The All India Congress Party, dominant political party led by Gandhi, had launched the civil disobedience movement against the British. By Picking up a pinch of salt from the Dandi beach and breaking the law restricting the making and selling of salt to the government monopoly, Gandhi had inaugurated on April 1930 the great salt stayagraha in the presence of thousands of cheering Indians surrounding him. Soon after entire India including NWFP was convulsed in a revolutionary situation.

The Frontier, under the leadership of Ghaffar Khan, rose in revolt against the British who ruthlessly used power to break the resistance, arrested a number of Khudai Khidmatgars. The Khan was arrested on 23 April and when news of his arrest and others reached the already agitated public of Peshawar, the city exploded – nonviolently. A procession was spontaneously formed. The police responded by arresting some of the leaders and carried them towards the police station in a jeep. The vehicle, however, broke down and then the arrested leaders offered to go themselves on foot to the police station. Their peaceful walk to the police station was followed by the agitated but disciplined procession of people.

When the Procession reached Kabuli Gate police station, three armoured cars carrying government troops appeared and drove into the crowd. The motorcycle of an English man who was following the cars collided with one of the armored cars and he was crushed to death. Soon after and rather suddenly began machine-gun firing on the crowd at the Qissa Khawani Bazaar. The firing continued for three hours. The crowd set one armour car into fire. The Bazaar was literally littered with the dead and the wounded. At this time, the commander of a Gadwali regiment of Hindu Rajput, Chandar Singh, refused to step into the military van taking the sepoys from cantonment to Qissa Khawani Bazaar. When the sepoys, without their commander, reached the scene, they were ordered to open fire. But soon after some one shouted : “Don’t open fire, the unarmed people are your brothers” and all the soldiers of the regimens put down their arms. Some of them joined the crowd. A British battalion then rushed in, the Gadwali were taken to the police stations. They were finally awarded different prison terms (36).

Describing the firing at Qissa Khawani Bazaar, Gene Sharp in his study on nonviolent movements says :

“When those in front fell down wounded by the shots, those behind came forward with their breasts bared and exposed themselves to the fire, so much so that some people got as many as 21 bullets wounds in their bodies, and all the people stood their ground without getting into a panic. A young Sikh boy came and stood in front of a soldier and asked him to fire at him, which the soldier unhesitatingly did, killing him. The crowd kept standing at the spot facing the soldiers and were fired at from time to time, until there were heaps of wounded and dying lying about."

The Anglo–Indian paper of Lahore, which represents the official view, itself wrote to the effect that the people came forward one after another to face the firing and when they fell wounded they were dragged back and others came forward to be shot at. This state of things continued from 11 till 5 o’ clock in the evening. When the number of corpses became too many the ambulance cars of the government took them away and burned them (37).

However, the mass resistance in Peshawar and elsewhere in the Frontier continued despite British atrocities. A couple of days later, both the police and the military left the city, leaving it in the hands of the Khudai Khidmatgars. But they returned after a few days, took control of the city, declared the Khudai Khidmatgars illegal and closed down their offices. Repression was also let lose in the village of the Khan, Utmanzai, but the spirit of the people remained unbroken. The movement had a liberating effect upon rest of India and the British were stunned. They provoked the Pathans and very much wanted them to retaliate violently so that their ruthless military and police action could be undertaken and justified on moral and other grounds and the movement be crushed for all times to come. But the Pathans remained nonviolent and this unnerved the British. Commenting on their despair, Ghaffar Khan Said : “The British feared a nonviolent Pathan more than a violent one. All the horrors the British perpetrated on the Pathans had only one purpose : to provoke them to violence.” (38)

The British feared the two Gandhis most – Mahatama Gandhi and Frontier Gandhi (Ghaffar Khan). Both almost completely dominated the nonviolent struggle for freedom for a united India and played crucial role during the last phase of British Raj : 1930–1947. However, freedom at midnight in August 1947 brought no reprieve for the two Gandhis. India was then seized by the worst kind of communal violence and divided Bengal and dived Pubjab were affected most. Both the Gandhis directed all their energies towards the protection and rescue of the victims of violence. But then Mahatama Gandhi was assassinated in 1948, and Ghaffar Khan found himself hounded by the newly created state of Pakistan.

The going was, indeed, very tough for the Khan and the Khudai Khidmatgars in the new state. His preference for a united India in the post–British scenario was well known. His vehement opposition to partition of India on communal lines and his close association with the All India Congress Party was neither forgotten nor forgiven. The party against whom he had campaigned in Frontier and elsewhere, the Muslim League, had successfully led the movement for the creation of Pakistan and it came to power in Pakistan in 1947. Worse still, his closeness and fondness for Gandhi was also well–known and Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan, had devoted his life, especially since early 1930s, in fighting political battles against Gandhi and against the Congress and did not allow their political agenda for post–British India to succeed.

Again, the Khan and his Khudai Khidmatgars had all along campaigned against the retrogressive Muslim forces and feudal lords who had collaborated with the British during the colonial days. Many of the Mullahs and feudal lords had jumped into the bandwagon of the Muslim League and they were now running amock in the corridors of power in Pakistan. Finally Jinnah, who was the father of the nation and who was a constitutionalist and a secularist, did’nt live long enough to put the country on constitutional, democratic tracks. He died in 1948 and the state was hijacked away by the retrogressive religious forces, self-seeking bureaucrats, feudal and tribal lords, unscrupulous politicians and powerful military.

In fact, the going got tougher soon after the new state of Pakistan was created and even when Jinnah was alive and very much in power. The Congress government then in power in the Frontier was summarily dissolved soon after Pakistan’s independence by the order of the central government. It was done without referring the matter to the Provincial Assembly where the Congress enjoyed majority support. In addition, the Khudai Khidmatgars organization was banned and not a single issue of the Pashtun, a Journal which Ghaffar Khan had launched during colonial times and which was very popular among the Pakhtuns every where, was allowed to be published in Pakistan. The Khan was sent behind the bars for three years in 1948. The court proceedings against him was indicative of the way the Pakistani state was going to treat him.

Ghaffar Khan was arrested on 25 June 1948 on charge of anti -state activity and the very next day, he was awarded three years rigorous imprisonment – the maximum punishment under section 40 of the Frontier Crimes Regulation. The Deputy Commissioner of Kohat tried him and awarded the sentience-all in one go and in one day. However, Ghaffar Khan was kept in jail even after the expiry of the term and was released after about 5 years on 5 January 1954 as a measure of amnesty to all political prisoners. Even afterwards, the Khan was frequently arrested, put under house arrest or imprisoned. As a matter of fact, he spent more years of his life in Pakistani jails than during the British period. Being totally disenchanted with politics in Pakistan, he also opted for self-exile and stayed in Afghanistan and India during part of 1970s and 1980s.

While the going was tough for him in Pakistan, he also gave tough time to the power elites of Pakistan. Repeatedly and fearlessly he demanded equal rights for the citizens living in the four provinces of Pakistan, called for equitable power - and resource - sharing among the provinces, condemned state terrorism and military rule, criticized the retrogressive religious forces for their collaboration with the repressive forces in the country and for justifying violence in the name of Islam. He championed the cause of democracy, rule of law for all and human rights for all. The state retaliated by projecting him as a separatist and his love for the Pakhtuns, his demand to name the Frontier as Pakhtunistan and his numerous statements advocating the redrawing of the boundaries in the territories where the Pakhtuns were living were projected as steps toward the creation of an independent Pakhtun state out of Pakistan. The government was also facilitated in its propaganda against the Khan as much of his struggle for political and social change through nonviolent action was focused on the region and on the future of the Pakhtuns. Furthermore, it was only the Pakhtuns who could join his Khudai Khitmatgars organization. Again, his longing for the freedom of the Pakhtuns and Pakhtun lands , his love for Pakhtun language ,heritage , culture and past and future and his advocacy in favour of peaceful and harmonious ties between and among Afghanistan ,Pakistan and India earned him many enemies in the corridors of power in Pakistan. Worse still, while successive Pakistani governments had all the power and resources to vilify, villainize and malign him and project him as an enemy of Pakistan, Ghaffar Khan had very little opportunity to present his view point on different issues. He was often immobilized due to imprisonment, banishment from one province to another and house arrest and both the print and electronic media were reluctant to present his case before the masses as the media was under firm government control. Such a state of affairs saddened him a lot as his universalist and humanist ideas were not allowed to reach the people and he was presented as a local leader, as a leader of the Pakhtuns only.

However, it was the Afghan tragedy which saddened him most and the last decade of his life was a decade which broke his heart. This was the period when his dream land - the Pakhtun belt comprising Afghan and Pakistani areas - was trampled under military boots and it was converted into a battlefield for the Soviet troops and Soviet – backed Afghan troops and the American, Pakistani and Saudi Arbian backed troops euphemistically called Mujahideen and holy warriors. The Afghan crisis caused colossal destruction, war and war–related deaths and whole scale displacements and the major victims were the Pakhtuns living on both sides of Pak-Afghan borders. A major portion of the last ten years of his life were spent in Afghanistan and during the period, he worked for peace in Afghanistan, but he was forced to witness the Pakhtuns taking up arms against one another and against the Soviets and the occupation of the Pakhtun lands by military forces and intelligence agencies and by the mercenaries coming from different countries. Before his eyes, his castle of nonviolence was being blown into pieces and his people whom he loved most, the Pakhtuns, were being sucked into war, conflict and violence.

For more than sixty years of his life, Ghaffar Khan had worked relentlessly for the liberation, progress and unity of these very Pakhtuns. For them he had bravely challenged the might of the British and successive Pakistani governments since 1947, suffered imprisonment and banishment and confronted the religious extremists and ruthless rulers. These were the Pakhtuns whom he had taught lessons of nonviolence, whom he had succeeded in disarming and unarming and whom he wished to unite in the bonds of love, sharing and caring. It was for them that he had envisioned the eventual emergence of a just, progressive, modern, democratic, peaceful and nonviolent Pakhtun society, a society where the faith of Islam would not be used to fan and fuel violence and justify violence. All his dreams were shattered when he was nearing the last days and months of his life .

Standing at the Khyber Pass and listening to the whisperings of unheard past, a past which was always there and which is nowhere, I think about the Siddhartha of Kapilvastu and the Siddhartha of Hashtnagar. Both were born with golden spoon in their mouth. Both belonged to the privileged and powerful families and both felt the seeds of discontent within themselves. Both were restless because of restless thoughts flooding in from all direction. Both were able to convince their reluctant fathers to let them wander in the wilderness and search for truth, harmony and peace. Both had wandered around near and far and preached peace and nonviolence. Both endured sufferings of all kinds at the hands of the powerful and faced ruthless Brahmins of their times with dignity and fearlessness. Both struggled for the common good and remained undaunted and unwavering in their resolve to serve the common people. Both fought heroically and nonviolently for the powerless and both were adorned by the suffering, disempowered multitude. And both are needed by the past, the present and the future today.

Listening to the unheard past and unheard future, I see a gigantic stupa emerging from behind the Khyber Pass and see the two Siddharthas together at its colourful balcony. I also hear them addressing the peoples of the world and saying : {“A day will come when the voice of the unheard past and unheard future will be listened to and when the banished gods of nonviolence will return to confirm that the forces of nonviolence can never be defeated. On that very day, the powerful and the ruthless would realize that the Siddharthas never die. They live for ever. »

Footnotes :

(1) The Khyber Pass, in Western Asia, is one of the most famous mountain passes in the world. The 53 kilometre (33 mile) long passage through the Hindukush mountains connects Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is, in fact, one of the most important passes between the two countries. Winding northwest through the Sefid Koh Range near Peshawar in Pakistan to Kabul in Afghanistan, the Pass is an important strategic gateway. For centuries, numerous invading armies have used the Khyber as their entry point for their invasion of Ind-o-Pakistan subcontinent. While the military importance of the Pass is widely known, little known is the fact that was a major trade route for centuries. In addition, it has also served as a cultural route connecting the people living beyond the Pass on both sides (www.afghan-network.net/Culture/khyber.html, accessed on 22 March 2007).
(2)The Pathans or Paktuns or Pashtuns(also known as ethnic Afghans) are an ethno-linguistic group with population primarily concentrated in eastern and southern Afghanistan and in the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), Federally Adminstered Tribal Areas and Baluchistan province of Pakistan. Additional Pakhtun communities live in the Northern Areas, Kashmir and Karachi in Pakistan. There are smaller Pakhtun communities in Iran and India, and a large Pathan migrant worker community in the Gulf and Middle Eastern countries. They constitute 15.42 percent of Pakistan’s population and 42 percent of Afghan population. The Pakhtuns are typically characterized by their Pashtu language, adherence to Pakhtunwali (an indigenous code of honour and culture) and Islamic faith. They have survived a turbulent history over several centuries and their martial prowess has been renowned since Alexander the Great’s invasion in the third century B.C. They belong to one of the few groups that fought very bravely against the British and managed to impede British imperialism during the 19th century. Again, the Pakhtuns played a pivotal role in the Soviet war in Afghanistan during 1979-89, as many joined the resistance forces. They gained world-wide attention with the rise and fall of the Talibans, since they were the main ethnic contingent in the movement(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pashtun , accessed on 22 March 2007).
The exact date of birth is not recorded. Ghaffar Khan guesses that the year was 1890 and says that he guesses so because his mother used to tell him that he was eleven years old when his elder brother Dr. Khan Saheb got married in 1901.
Muhammad Ishaq, “Peshawar’s Illustrious Past”, Daily Dawn (Karachi), 5 November 2006.
D.G. Tendulkar, Abdul Ghaffar Khan : Faith is a Battle, New Delhi : Gandhi Peace Foundation, 1967,P.13.
Ibid, P.14.
(10) Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Aapbiti (autobiography in Urdu), Lahore : Fiction House, 2004, P.8.
(11) When Ghaffar Khan was five or six year old, he was admitted to a mosque to take lessons from a Mullah, who was hardly literate and who could read the Quran but could’nt understand its meaning. He was also cruel and harsh. When the young Khan finished reading the Holy Quran, his father organized a celebration. At the age of 8, Ghaffar Khan was admitted to the Municipal Board High School, Peshawar (1898). He got admission in the Edward Mission School, Peshawar in 1901. While studying there, he applied for Commission in the British army and when he was appearing at the Matriculation examination, he was informed that the Commission was granted to him. He was also asked to present himself the following day at 10 a.m. before the Recruiting Office. He then left his exam unfinished and went to the Recruiting Office. He was examined there and enrolled for direct Commission. However, he could’nt stay in the army for long and left it when he realized that the British officers’ attitude toward the Indian army men was discriminatory and degrading .He then went to Aligarh in the year 1908 to study there. Later, arrangements were made for his study in England where his elder brother was studying medicine. While he was willing to proceed abroad for studies, he decided against it in 1909 as his mother opposed his going abroad. The year 2009 marks the end of his quest for formal education, but it also marks the beginning of his deeper interest and involvement in the spread of literacy in his village and elsewhere in NWFP in particular. He opened a school in his village Utmanzai in 1910 and subsequently a number of schools were opened in other areas of the province. Later, these schools became the launching pad for his movement for political and social change in the Pakhtun belt in the present day Pakistan.

Anthem of Khudai Khidmatgar

2008-06-12T00:18:00.000-07:00

We are the army of God By death or wealth unmoved, We march, our leader and we, Ready to die!

In the name of God, we march And in his name, We die We serve in the name of God God's servant are we!

God is our king, And great is he, We serve our Lord, His slaves are we!

Our country's cause We serve with our breath, For such an end, Glorious is death

We serve and we love Our people and our cause Freedom is our aim, And our lives are its price.

We love our country And respect our country Zealously we protect it For the glory of God

By canon or gun undismayed Soldiers and horsemen, None can come between, Our work and our duty.

Badshah Khan and our times

2008-06-12T00:17:00.000-07:00

In this biography, RAJMOHAN GANDHI offers fresh insights into the life and achievements of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, drawing close parallels with the life of Mahatma Gandhi, his `brother in spirit'. He looks at Ghaffar Khan `with the spectacles of today'. Exclusive extracts.

WRITING seven years before Badshah Khan's death, the Swedish scholar Jansson identified four `messages' from his life: intense Pakhtun nationalism, moral and social reform, non-violence, and Islam. As to what Ghaffar Khan may mean to us today, let us attempt to appraise him as a Pakhtun, as a subcontinental figure, as a Muslim, and, finally, as a voice in today's world.

Born the younger son of a khan in a feudal society where `impoverished tenants provided menial services and manpower to magnify the status of their Khan', Ghaffar Khan appeared to raise ordinary Pakhtuns `from ignominious depths of ignorance and obscurity to heights of enlightenment and glory'. According to Taizi, who served a Pakistani government that was suspicious of our subject, it was Ghaffar Khan's `stamina, struggles, patience, devotion and determined tolerance in the face of suffering that lifted Pakhtuns from the lowest level of serfdom to the high status of nationhood'.

We saw that his feeling for the Pakhtuns, probably the biggest passion of his life, emanated from almost every word, gesture and breath of his. For this love, sustained for a century, he was willing to walk miles, to give up the privilege and comfort of a khan's life and the joys of family life, to be locked up in small cells, to be fettered, to grind corn on heavy chakkis, to eat horrible food, to be slandered, and more. If ever a man lived, sacrificed, suffered and died for his people, Ghaffar Khan was such a man.

Had not his Muslim tradition, to which he was both instinctively ad thoughtfully loyal, forbade the appellation, Badshah Khan might have been called a prophet for his people. He cannot be called that, but through his austerity, bearing, unwavering commitment and unsparing frankness he brought to his times a hint of the prophets of yore.

Loving his Pakhtuns, he also saw them clearly, in their strength and in their weakness, and spent all of himself in striving to free them of badal or revenge. With many Pakhtuns he succeeded, at least for some time; the subcontinent, the Raj, Afghanistan and the world acknowledged that thanks to him a number of Pakhtuns had moved from a love of the rifle to a commitment to non-violence ... .

... .Like any `buffer' people elsewhere in the world, caught between bigger neighbours, the Pakhtuns have always been obliged to adjust to changing events. In shifting sands they were grateful to be led by a man who adhered to his principles. Even when they did not heed Ghaffar Khan, and persisted with their mutual jealousies and self-seeking, they loved him as they had not, for decades, loved another Pakhtun. Every new incarceration or exile that he suffered only increased this love, which at his death took the unforgettable form of a pageant across the Khyber. Free behind bars, and a general without a gun, he was also, in some ways, a king who did not need a throne.

The Pakhtuns' admiration for him was stronger than their compliance. Although the Khudai Khidmatgars have been called `arguably the best organized' rural force involved in the freedom struggle `in the entire subcontinent', they did not remain as selfless in politics, or as dedicated in social service, or as strong in numbers, as Ghaffar Khan desired. His admonitions on their shortcomings shamed them but did not change them.

Did the magnet that drew Badshah Khan to his Pakhtuns keep him away from other sections of humanity? Was he a nationalist rather than a universalist? We should note, before attempting to answer this question, that Badshah Khan's story reminds us of the importance, in almost every conflict, of ethnicity. Even where religion, or Islam in particular, appears to be the central question, closer study may reveal that ethnicity is not less crucial.

We noticed that Badshah Khan's references to the Pakhtuns' neighbours — Punjabis in Pakistan, Tajiks in Afghanistan, and Iranians — were not always magnanimous. But apart from the fact that defending the dignity of the Pakhtuns, a central goal for him, involved tensions and at times conflicts with Punjabis (and, in Afghaistan, with Tajiks), we should also note that reflection always prompted him to deplore, and also, as far as he was concerned, to disavow, any ill will towards the Pakhtuns' ethnic neighbours.

He did not call Punjabis or Tajiks `my people' but he did see them as equals and sometimes as brothers. Also, as Jansson points out, he used the term Pakhtun `in a very wide sense, comprising all those living in Pakhtun society or even in the NWFP'. All the same, we should acknowledge, as no doubt he would have done, that at the beginning of the twenty-first century the need for reconciliation across ethnic (or national) divides is at least as critical as the need for nonviolence in struggles for justice ... .

... . Equally, the story provided evidence of Ghaffar Khan's loyalty to the peoples of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. We saw that this loyalty always bore the sharp edge of honesty and refused to condone injustice. He and his brother saved Hindu and Sikh lives in the Frontier; he brought succour and relief to Muslim victims in Bihar; he confronted Jinnah in Pakistan and, twenty years later, India's Parliament with uncomfortable facts of attacks on minorities.

His fight for the rights of the threatened, the weak and the poor, his sympathy for peoples across the subcontinent's borders, his scepticism about the effectiveness of guns and bombs, and his frankness towards both rulers and citizens make him an inspiring model. He and his older friend, Gandhi, present themselves to posterity, as they did to their contemporaries, as brothers in arms, wielding the weapons of conscience and courage.

* * *

In the wake of 9/11, the 2003 attack on Iraq, and continuing violence in Israel-Palestine and in Kashmir, others, too, have recalled Badshah Khan. Thus Dilip Simeon writes in New Delhi's Outlook magazine (`Fareedian Slips', 23 June 2003) of `Gandhi and Ghaffar Khan who did not need to bomb people to teach them liberal democracy or civic restraint'. Viewing struggles for human and democratic rights, Harold Gould, the American scholar, contrasts non-violent strategies that `brought down empires' in south Asia with the `walking bombs' in the Middle East and Kashmir `whose self-detonations invite devastating retaliatory assaults on their innocent fellow citizens'. Ghaffar Khan's life has a role in the `radical rethinking by radical Islamists' that Gould and other voices, Muslim and non-Muslim, ask for.

We saw that Ghaffar Khan the Muslim thought that `prayer in whatever language or form was addressed to one and the same God'. His daily life demonstrated this belief in the unity of humanity. We noticed the joy with which he showed the Buddha statues of Bamiyan to Kamalnayan Bajaj and Madalasa Agrawal, statues that the Taliban would later destroy. Comfortable with his Hindu friends, comrades and colleagues, Badshah Khan, we saw, also loved Westerners and Christians like the Wigram brothers and was even able to forgive a white political foe who had blocked some of his plans, Olaf Caroe.

In 1946, alluding to the potential for fanaticism in the Frontier region, he warned that `a dangerous situation is fast developing in the tribal areas', and a year later he said, `I feel it is my duty to warn you against future dangers so that I may justify myself before man and God on the Day of Judgment.' This was a quintessentially Muslim thought from one whose directness invited charges of apostasy from those made uncomfortable by it.

The naturalness of his Islam, his directness, his rejection of violence and revenge, and his readiness to cooperate with non-Muslims add up to a valuable legacy for our angry times. This legacy may be of help to Muslims and non-Muslims today in the task of overcoming divides between Islam and the West (and modernity), between Afghanistan and the subcontinent, between Islam and the subcontinent's Hindus, Sikhs and other non-Muslims. His bridge-building life is a refutation of the clash-of-civilization's theory.

But he was also a rock. No force or threat could shake his stand for Pakhtun dignity, which at bottom was a stand for the freedom and dignity of every human being. The Pakhtuns between the Hindu Kush and the Indus were his first love but also his links to humankind, and we can, if we wish, hear him, even if we are west of that mountain range or east of that river.

Ghaffar Khan, Non-violent Badshah of the Pakhtuns, Rajmohan Gandhi, p. 312, Rs. 325.

Rajmohan Gandhi is Visiting Professor, Program in South Asia and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Illinois, U.S.

QALANDAR MOHMAND

2008-06-12T00:15:00.000-07:00

QALANDAR MOHMAND
Sahibzada who became Qalandar of Pashto

Shaheen Buneri

The eminent Pushto writer, poet, playwright, linguist, critic, research scholar and the patron chairman of the Peshawar Press Club, Prof Habibur Rehman Qalandar Momand, breathed his last here in Peshawar last year.
Qalandar was born on 1st September, 1930. After passing his matriculation examination with distinction, he got admission at historic Islamia College. From his early days, he had a special flair for literary and research pursuits. He was a true revolutionary who worked all his life for the social, political and cultural emancipation of his people. He got his MA in English literature and LLB degrees from the University of Peshawar with distinction.

He started his practical life as an employee in the agriculture department, but his restless soul did not allow him to stay in one place and soon he switched over to Angus Robertson, a private construction company.

Qalandar remained the secretary of the famous literary organisation, Ulasi Adabi Jirga. In 1962, he launched another representative literary organisation by the name of Da Saho Lekonkyo Maraka and worked as the secretary general of this organisation till his death. This organization introduced a number of new trends in the Pakhto poetry and criticism and encouraged a large number of budding writers in their literary activities.

Later on, his literary taste impelled him to join teaching as a profession. He performed his duties as a dynamic and versatile teacher of English at the Government Colleges in Peshawar and Abbottabad. In 1980, Qalandar was appointed as the principal of the Law College of the Gomal University, DI Khan.

In 1983, he devoted himself to the compilation of the first authentic Pakhto dictionary, Daryab, and accomplished this task in 1993. He was not only a versatile writer of Pushto, Urdu, Hindko, Arabic and Persian but also a bold journalist who contributed numberless articles to the well-known English dailies.

He started his journalistic career as a reporter with the daily al-Haq. He also worked in different capacities with the dailies Anjaam, Shehbaz, Bang-e-Haram, Khyber Mail, Peshawar Times, Frontier Guardian, Naqeeb, Laar, Rehbar, Nangyalay, Sarhad and Masawaat.

He performed his duties as a reporter for the famous weekly magasines of the former East Pakistan like the Weekly Holiday and Young Pakistan.

As a political figure, he was the most active and enthusiastic activist of the late Bachaa Khan's Khudai Khidmatgar movement. During his struggle against Ayub Khan's martial law regime, he was removed from service and kept at the Multan, Lahore, Nowshera and Peshawar jails as a political prisoner.

He has a large number of research and creative books to his credit, among which his two books, Gujrai of Pakhto fiction (1957) and Sabawon of poetry collection (1976) got immense popularity among the lovers of the Pakhto literature. His research works include A Critical Study of Khairul Bayan, Pata Khazana fil Mezan, Nazmiyat, Translation of the Chapter on Criticism from Introduction to the Study of English Literature by Hudson, Da Rehman Baba Kuliyat, Da Muhammadi Sahibzada Diwan, Critical Study of two books of Munshi Ahmad Jan, Hagha Dagha and Da Qissa Khwani Gup and Da Abol Qasim Diwan. Qalandar Momand was decorated with the Pride of Performance Award and Award for Democracy by the Government of Pakistan for his meritorious services in the fields of literature and journalism.

Being a multi-dimensional personality, his death has created a vacuum which will take a long time to be filled. He will be remembered for his outstanding services to the Pakhto literature.

Khatir Afridi

2008-06-12T00:12:00.000-07:00

Khatir Afridi whose real name was Misree Khan was born in 1929 at Landikotal to Zakha Khel Afridi. He gained tremendous mass popularity, next only to Rahman Baba, due to his simple style and the deep pathos in his poetry.

Khatir was a few days old when his father died but his grandfather and uncle reared him very well and raised him like a son. Khatir, unfortunately, could not go to school. He took up a job at the Khyber Rifle's camp as a gardener and later on entered the line of private business. But he was fond of poetry and he learnt to compose verses to the tunes of the rabab which was played by the maestro, Bagh-i-Haram, a resident of Malikdeen Khel who lived very close to Khatir.

Qayum Kausar Afridi, his closest companion, told me, "One day I asked Khatir to give me his manuscript so that I could preserve it. I kept it with me till his only son, Javed Khan, grew up and was able to publish it. Khatir dressed simply and would carry a pistol with him according to the tribal tradition. He always wore a black turban but was a polite and calm person. His poetry is simple and spontaneous."

Javed Khan Afridi while talking to me about his father revealed, "A large number of unauthorized and authentic editions of my father's poetry have been published in Kabul and Peshawar. PTV and Radio Pakistan, Peshawar have so far aired quite a bit of Khatir Afridi's poetry but now I intend to take legal action against them. No literary and cultural organization - government or civil - has ever approached me for any kind of award for my father's contribution to Pashto."

When in the early 60s Gulab Sher sang 'Sta manzal manzaloono ke yema, Rasedoo omaidoono ke yema,' from Radio Pakistan, Peshawar, Khatir attained new heights of popularity.

Murad Shinwari says that the tunes of Bagh-i-Haram and the correction of Nazir Baba are the two factors behind Khatir's mass popularity. Nearly 80 per cent of his Kuliyat has been sung and 90 per cent Pakhtoons in every part of the world know about Khatir. Almost every Pashto musical concert begins with Khatir Afridi's verses. His verses are full of pathos, romance and rhythm. He started his poetic career at a very tender age by composing folk poetry including Loba, Tapa, Chartbeta, Geet and Nimakai but then switched over to the ghazal. His diction is simple and easy flowing. Hamza Baba and Nazir Baba could not eclipse his poetic talent.

Dr Raj Wali Shah Khattak maintains that the centrality of his poetry is his deep love and this merit takes him to the pinnacle of universality and sublimity. Khatir's ghazal has all the qualities of the best romantic thoughts reflective of his indepth observation and artistic vision. Dr Salma Shaheen is of the view that Khatir is not only the pride of Khyber but also all the Pakhtoons love his poetry because Khatir is the representative of Ishq.

Every Pakhtoon singer takes pride in singing him. Khatir's first authentic Da Khatir Kuliyat spreading over 605 pages came out in 1998. Its second edition was published in 1999 while the third edition was brought out in 2004 and every edition sold out like hot cakes. Strange to say that the provincial cultural department, Pashto Academy, Pashto Adabi Board, Academy of Letters, Islamabad, Peshawar chapter, more than 200 so called Pashto Adabi Jirgas arranged a seminar or brought out a special issue on the life and works of a poet who enjoys international fame. Also a number of foreign radio channels which broadcast Pashto programmes have not aired any programme on Khatir. A part of his poetry has been translated into English, German, French, Russian, Persian and Urdu. Khatir Afridi, known as the John Keats of Pashto died in 1968 at the age 39. "His couplet on his epitaph 'Che pa qabar mey teraigey khudai da paara, Lag sha maata khapa neewalei zaba marr yem' (Whenever you pass my grave, please stay a little while as I might be dead) shows our apathy towards our legendary heroes, poets and artists," lamented his son Javed Khan Afridi. The credit goes to the unflinching efforts of Qayum Kausar Afridi, Niaz Amin Niaz Afridi, Javed Khan Afridi, Kalimullah Kalim Shinwari and Aslam Taseer Afridi who presented Da Khatir Kuliyat to his numerous Pakhtoon lovers. It is ironic that this popular poet is receding into total oblivion.

AHMAD SHAH ABDALI

2008-06-12T00:11:00.000-07:00

SHAH DURR-I-DURRAN

AHMAD SHAH, the founder of the Durrani monarchy, rose from the mere character of a partisan, to a distinguished command in the service of the Persian conqueror; Nadir Shah. Of the family of the Saddozis, and chief of the tribe of Ahdali, the most illustrious family of the Afghans, he was, in his youth, imprisoned in a fortress, with his elder brother Zulfikar Khan, by Husain Khan, governor of Kandahar for the Ghalzis, which powerful tribe of Afghans, after overrunning the whole of Persia, had, a few years previously, trodden the throne of the sufis in the dust, and conquered that mighty empire.

Ahmad Shah and his brother, whose tribe were at feud with the Ghalzis, owed their freedom to Nadir Shah who in the year A.D. 1736-37, laid siege to Kandahar, which he captured. The brothers, with a powerful body of their clansmen, followed the fortunes of the conqueror; and greatly distinguished themselves in the war with the Turks; and were rewarded with the lands now held by the Durrani tribe in the vicinity of Kandahar.

On the day subsequent to the murder of Nadir Shah, (the particulars of which, as belonging to Persian history, need not be here detailed, although one among the causes of it has been attributed to his attachment to the Afghan troops in his service) a battle ensued between the Persians on the one side, and the Afghans and Uzbaks on the other; but the event does not appear to have decided any thing. But after this affair; Ahmad Shah saw that no time was to be lost in looking to the safety of himself and clansmen, and he accordingly fought his way through the greater part of Khura-san with a small force of between 2000 and 3000 horsemen, and repaired, by rapid marches, to Kandahar, which had now become the head-quarters of the Abdali tribe, and chief city of south-western Afghanistan. Here he intercepted an immense treasure, which had been sent from India for the use of Nadir Shah, which Ahmad appropriated, after compelling the Durranis, who had first siezed upon it, to give it up.

In October of the same year, Ahmad, then but twenty-three years old, assumed the title of Shah or King of Afghanistan, and was crowned at Kandahar; with great pomp, the different chiefs of the various Afghan tribes, with but few exceptions, and the Kazal-ba~lios, Baluchis, and llazarahs, assisting; thus laying the founda-tion of the Durrani monarchy. And although the warlike and indepciident people, who now became his subjects, had never been accustomed to a sovereign’s yoke, save in being compelled to pay tribute to a foreign ruler; yet such were his energy and capacity for government, that he was successful in gaining the affection of his own tribe; and with the exception of the Ghalzis, ever a most turbulent and unruly sept, he succeeded in instilling among the other Afghan tribes a spirit of attachment to their native monarch; and also in others, not Afghans, but dwelling in Afghanistan. With the Balüch and Hazarah tribes, his neighbours, he formed an offensive and defensive alliance.

Having first brought the refractory Ghalzis into subjection, Ahmad Shah began his conquests; and such was the uninterrupted tide of his success, that by the summer of 1751 he had conquered the whole of the countries, extending as far west as Nishapur in Persian Khursan. In 1752 he conquered Kashmir, and obtained from the Mughal Emperor of Hindustan, a cession of the whole of the tract of country as far east as Sirhind, thus laying the founda-tion of a kingdom, which soon became formidable to surrounding nations.

Ahmad Shah had now leisure to turn his attention to internal affairs, and to the settlement of Afghanistan and the newly-acquired provinces. He thus passed the next four years in tranquillity, and appears to have had time to devote himself to literature. He used to hold, at stated periods, what is termed a Majlis-i-Eeulama, or Assembly of the Learned, the early part of which was generally devoted to divinity and civil law-for Ahmad Shah himself was a Molawi and concluded with conversations on science and poetry. He wrote a Collection of Odes in Pashto his own native tongue, tinged, as usual, with the mysticisms of the sufis, and from that work the following specimens have been taken. The work is scarce, particularly in eastern Afghanistan. He was also the author of several poems in the Persian language.

In the year 1756 Ahmad Shah had again to buckle on the sword, and advance into the Panjab, which the Mughals about this time attempted to recover; but he quickly regained all that had been lost; drove them out of the Panjab; and advanced straight upon Dilhi, which he entered after but a faint opposition. His troops having become sickly, from passing the whole of the hot season in India, warned Ahmad Shah to return, which he did soon after, having compelled the Mughal Emperor to bestow the Panjab and Sindh upon his son Timur; who had already been married to a Mugbal princess. Ahmad Shah passed the next winter at Kandahar; but was obliged to set out soon after, for the purpose of quelling disturbances in Persia and Turkistan.

During the next year; matters had gone on badly in India; and Prince Timur was unable to stem the tide of Maharata conquest. which had now rolled upon the Panjab. The Maharatas had taken Sirhind, and were advancing from the west, which put Prince Timur under the necessity of retiring across the Indus with his troops. The Maharatas, being now unopposed, pushed on as far as the Hydaspes or Jhilum, and also detached a force to take possession of Multan.

These events happened in the summer of 1758; and Ahmad Shah was preparing to march into India, when he was detained by the rebellion of the Baluchis and although this matter was subsequently settled by negociation, it was not until the winter of 1759 that he could cross the Indus and advance towards Hindustan, the Maharatas retreating before him towards Dilhi, with the intention of covering that city. After totally defeating them at Budli, Ahmad Shah again captured Dilhi. He afterwards pursued his conquests in the Do-ab; but subsequently encamped at a place near Anup-ahahr, where, being joined by the Wazir of Hindustan, with the few available troops of the Mughal Emperor; he prepared for passing the monsoon, or rainy season, and for the final struggle with the Maharatas, upon which the fate of India rested.

The strength of Ahmad Shah’s army consisted of 41,800 horse, his own subjects, on whom he chiefly relied; 28,000 Rohilahs- Afghans, who were descended from those tribes who had emigrated from Afghanistan at different periods, and settled in India and about 10,000 Hindustani troops, under their own chiefs. He had also 700 zamburaks, or camel swivels, small pieces carrying balls of about a pound weight, and a few pieces of artillery.

The Maharata army, under Wiswas Rao, and Saeddasheo Rao-better known as the Bhow-consisted of about 70,000 horse, 15,000 infantry, trained after the European fashion, and 200 pieces of artillery, besides numberless shutturnalls, or zamburaks.

At length, on the 7th of January 1761, after facing each other for some months, the Maharatas, who had been blockaded in their own intrenched camp at Panipatt, a few miles from Dilhi, were, from the extremities to which they were put, for want of food and forage, under the necessity of attacking the Durrani army. The details of this great and important battle need not be enlarged on here: suffice it to say, that Ahmad Shah was completely successful. The Maharatas were entirely defeated and put to flight; and Wiwas Rao, the heir-apparent of the Maharata empire, and almost the whole of the army, perished in the flight or pursuit.

The crowning victory at Panipatt, which was fatal to the power of the Maharataa, laid Hindustan at the feet of Ahmad Shah; but he, seeing the difficulty of retaining so remote a dominion, adhered to the wise plan he had, from the first, carved out, and contented himself with that portion of India that had formerly been ceded to him, bestowing the rest on such native chiefs as had aided him in the struggle.

In the spring of 1761, Ahmad Shah, returned to Kabul; and from that period, up to the spring of 1773, was actively employed against foreign and domestic foes; but at that time his health, which had been long declining, continued to get worse, and pre-vented his engaging in any foreign expeditions. His complaint was a cancer in the face, which had afflicted him first in 1764, and at last occasioned his death. He died at Murghah, in Afghanistan, in the beginning of June 1773, in the fiftieth year of his age.

The countries under his dominion extended, at the time of his death, from the west of Khurasan, to Sirhind on the Jumna, and from the Oxus to the Indian Ocean, all either secured by treaty, or in actual possession.

The character of Ahmad Shah has been so admirably depicted by Mountstuart Elphinstone, that I shall not hesitate to give it here in full.

“The character of Ahmad Shah appears to have been admirably suited to the situation in which he was placed. His enterprise and decision enabled him to profit by the confusion that followed the death of Nadir, and the prudence and moderation, which he acquired from his dealings with his own nation, were no less necessary to govern a warlike and independent people, than the bold and commanding turn of his own genius.

“His military courage and activity are spoken of with admiration, both by his own subjects, and the nations with whom he was engaged, either in wars or alliances. He seems to have been naturally disposed to mildness and clemency; and though it is impossible to acquire sovereign power; and perhaps, in Asia, to maintain it, without crimes; yet the memory of no Eastern Prince is stained with fewer acts of cruelty and injustice.

“In his personal character he seems to have been cheerful, affable, and good-natured. He maintained considerable dignity on state occasions, but at other times his manners were plain and familiar; and with the Durranis he kept up the same equal and popular demeanour which was usual with their Khans or Chiefs before they assumed the title of King. He treated Moollahs and holy men with great respect, both from policy and inclination. He was himself a divine and an author, and was always ambitious of the character of a saint.

“His policy towards the different parts of his doniinions was to rely principally on conciliation with the Afghans and BalUchIs with this difference between the nations, that he applied himself to the whole people in the first case, and only to the chief in the other. His possessions in Turkistan he kept under by force; but left the Tartar chiefs of the country unremoved, and used them with moderation. The Indian provinces were kept by force alone; and in Khurasan he trusted to the attachment of some chiefs, took hostages from others, and was ready to carry his arms against any who disturbed his plans.

The handsome tomb of Ahmad Shah stands near the palace at Kandahar. It is held in great estimation by the Durranis, and is respected as a sanctuary, no one venturing to touch one who has taken refuge there. It is not uncommon for persons of even the highest rank, to give up the world, and spend their lives at the monarch’s tomb; and certainly, if ever an Asiatic King deserved the gratitude of his country, it was Ahmad Shah, the “Pearl of the Durranis.”

Ahmad Shah was the grandfather of the unfortunate Shah-Shujase-ul-Mulk, whom the British re-seated on the throne of the Durranis in 1839, which affair terminated so unfortunately for all concerned.

ABDUL HAMEED

2008-06-12T00:08:00.000-07:00

ABD-UL-Hameed, was born at Mashu Khel a small village belonging to the Kudrizi clan, or branch, of the Afghan tribe of Mohmand, one of the purely Afghan tribes at present dwelling in the Peshawar district. Hence, Hameed, like Rahman, was a Mohmand, but of a different clan. The exact year of his birth I have been unable to discover, but it was certainly about the middle of the last half of the seventeenth century. He was brought up to the priesthood, and is said to have been endowed with a considerable amount of learning, which he acquired at Peshawar; and students from all parts of the surrounding districts sought his instruction.

He is the cynical poet of the Afghans-the Shaykh Sadi of the Pashto language and the beauty of his compositions is fully acknowledged, even amongst a nation so rich in poets as the Persians, by whom he is styled “Hameed the Hair-splitter.” His poetry, though generally of a moral tendency, and breathing contempt of the world and its vanities, is still tinged with Sufi doctrines, as all Muslim poetry, in whatever language written, more or less is. He was the author of three works-a poem entitled “ Nairang-i-Ishk,” or “ Love’s Fascination; “ “ Shah Gada,” or “The King and the Beggar ;“ and a Collection of Odes, entitled “Dur-o-Marjan,” or “Pearls and Corals,” from which the following translations have been selected.

The year of the poet’s decease is, like that of his birth, somewhat uncertain; but the people of his native village account his death to have taken place about the year A.D. 1732; and his descendants, on inquiring of them, state, that four generations have passed since that event occurred, which, at the usual computation of thirty years for each generation, agrees within five years with the period mentioned. An aged man of the same village, who died about twenty years since, in the 107th year of his age, had been, repeatedly, heard to say, by the people of the hamlet, that he had, in his youthful days, seen Mulla Hameed frequently, who, at that time, was upwards of fifty years old. Another patriarch, Malik Aziz Khan who is about a century old, states, that he had heard his father and grandfather relate, that they remembered Hameed well; and that he was just coming into notice as a poet, towards the close of Rahman’s life; and some of Hameed’s odes having reached the ear of Rahman, he sent for the poet to come and visit him; and was so pleased with his modesty and humility, that he gave him his blessing, and prayed that his verses might be sweet unto all men, and that no one might ever excel him in Afghan poetry. Up to the present day, certainly, Hameed has not been surpassed.

The poet’s grave is still pointed out by the people of his native village. Some of his descendants continue to dwell at Mashu Khel, and some are dispersed in other villages. The dwelling in which Hameed was horn, lived, and died, is now in ruins.

Badshah Khan

2008-06-12T00:06:00.000-07:00

In the Mohamadzai clan of the village of Utmanzai in Peshawar district there lived a kind and humble well-to-do landowner Baharam Khan. Abdul Ghaffar or Badshah Khan as he came to be known in later years was his fourth child.

When Abdul Ghaffar was five or six years old, he was admitted to a mosque to take lessons from a Mullah. In due course the young lad had finished reading the Holy Koran. He was, then, sent to the Municipal Board High School and later to Edwardes Memorial Mission High School at Peshawar, where the Rev. E F E Wigram was his headmaster. He was a person who greatly impressed Abdul Ghaffar and instilled in him the spirit of service to all creatures created by God.

In November 1906, while Abdul Ghaffar was in his sixth class, a servant named Barani Kaka tried to persuade him to get into military profession. The persuasion bore fruit and Abdul Ghaffar applied for a Commission in the army. But an incident at the army camp touched his sensibility and turned him against the coveted profession. He saw an English officer insulting an Indian senior in age. The insolent behaviour of the officer upset him so much that he ultimately decided not to enter the military career.

The young Khan was left with no alternative except to sit for the Matriculation examination. He was told that the quietness of Campbellpur afforded good facilities to work. So he went there only to find the place tiresome. Then in his desire to learn Arabic he went to Qadian and joined a Madrassah. At Qadian he had a dream, strange but instructive. Taking clue from the dream he went to study at Aligarh.

While at Aligarh, he received a message from his father asking him to return home and be prepared to go abroad to qualify himself for engineering. On reaching home Abdul Ghaffar found that his mother was not willing to see both her sons away from her. Ghaffar Khan respected his mother’s wish and that became a turning point in his life.

In the year 1912 began Abdul Ghaffar Khan's involvement with his people. Under the influence of Haji Abdul Wahid Sahib, he embarked upon his work as an educationist. They established their centre at Gaddar, in Peshawar district and opened schools all over Peshawar and Mardan districts. This work made them popular among the people. Fearing the influence of the Haji the authorities thought of separating these two pioneers. Haji was shrewd enough to sense their evil designs and escaped into the tribal territory. The Government, then, arrested most of the teachers of the schools run by the Haji and Abdul Ghaffar Khan.

Baharam Khan, in the circumstances, naturally felt uneasy about his son's activities. So the anxious father gave him a village to manage, married him off and hoped that with the new responsibi1ities the son would give up his strange notions and settle down. He did settle down and the following year a son was born to the young couple. The boy was named Ghani.

In 1913, he heard an announcement about an annual session of the Muslim League to be presided over by Sir Ibrahim Rahimtullah and addressed by Maulana Azad and others. So he went to Agra with a few friends and from there to Delhi for a short stay. He then returned to his village to continue his educational activities.

In December 1915, soon after the birth of Wali, his second son, his first son Ghani took ill. On the spur of the moment Ghani's mother came near him, walked around the Charpai and prayed in supplication to Allah to transfer her son's affliction and disease to her and spare the life of the child. Miraculously the son began to recover but unfortunately the mother fell ill and soon passed away.

After the death of his wife Ghaffar Khan's restlessness increased. He left the two children in the care of his mother and drowned his sorrow in work and service of his people. He now wanted Pakhtoons to unite, to be educated, reformed and organised. Rather than to follow anyone blindly, he asked them to think and act. He succeeded largely in his mission and his grateful people gathered in a mosque and declared him their Badshah, an uncrowned king.

The events that were to follow hereafter were not to be some isolated occurring. The war of 1914, the Montague-Chelmsford Report in July 1918, the Rowlatt Bills in February 1919, the nation-wide hartal on 6 April, the massacre of Jallianwala Bagh at Amritsar on 13 April and the declaring of Martial law in Punjab were the events so stirring that Badshah Khan plunged deeply into the current which was to engulf the country in the years to come. In the upheaval Abdul Ghaffar Khan was arrested and sent to prison. After his release from the jail Ghaffar Khan married again, as was desired by his old parents and soon involved himself in Hijarat movement, which was an off-shoot of Khilafat Movement. This work did not last long because the movement itself failed to gain momentum. In 1920 he attended the Congress session at Nagpur and was attracted to Gandhi and his programme. Coming back from Nagpur, Abdul Ghaffar Khan started Azad High School in his home-village Utmanzai. After some time he was made the president of Khilafat Committee. This led him to renew his contact with the people and they in turn prompted him to restart the defunct schools. Such activities were bound to alarm the authorities. Objection was raised to his touring the district and he was arrested. During this imprisonment he read theGita for the first time along with the Granth Saheb and the Bible.

In 1924, when Ghaffar Khan came out of jail, he was a frail and worn out man. His mother had died during his imprisonment. At the request of his sister Ghaffar Khan decided to go on Haj. In the same year Gandhi went on fast for communal amity. Ghaffar Khan volunteered to preach Hindu-Muslim unity.

In May 1928, he started the Pakhtun, a monthly journal in Pushtu, and organised the movement of Khudai Khidmatgar-the Servants of God. Both these efforts were aimed at teaching the Pakhtoons industry, economy and self reliance by inculcating in them self respect and fear of God that banished all other fears. When the Congress met on the banks of the Ravi, Ghaffar Khan attended it with a large number of people from the North West Frontier Province.

In April 1930, Abdul Ghaffar Khan was arrested for organising the Civil Disobedience movement following which a reign of repression was let loose in the land of the gallant Khudai Khidmatgar.

The main resolution at the Karachi session of the Congress in 1931, dealt with the truce-terms and the Round Table Conference proposed to be held in London. Ghaffar Khan was among those who supported the resolution. He informed the gathering that he was ill but was asked by Mahatma Gandhi to express his views on the subject. Being a soldier he knew only to obey his commander. That was the reason why he stood in front of them. This was the essential quality of Abdul Ghaffar Khan. Later in 1934 when Khan brothers went to Wardha as guests of Jamnalal Bajaj, to spend some time with Gandhi, Ghaffar Khan saw that there was a move in Bombay to have him elected to the presidential chair at the Congress session to be held that year. Abdul Ghaffar Khan issued a statement in which he said: 'Let me declare, as I have done over and over again, that I am only a humble soldier and it is my ambition to end my days not as a general but as a soldier.'

In October 1934, when Ghaffar Khan went to Calcutta, the students of Bengal welcomed him in the midst of J C Sengupta, Satish Chandra Dasgupta, Prof. Abdur Rehman and others. Addressing the gathering he requested not to call him Frontier Gandhi for he believed that there should be only one Gandhi. He said, 'Mahatma Gandhi is our general and there should be one general only. So do not add the name of Gandhi to my name. I am not fit for the praise you have showered on me. From Calcutta he went to Bombay to attend the annual session of the Congress. Here a resolution on the formation of the All India Village Industries Association was adopted. Gandhi included Badshah Khan on the Executive Committee of the AIVIA.

Those years were the period of exile from his home province. Therefore, Badshah Khan and his brother stayed at Wardha. They felt perfectly at home with Mahatma Gandhi and took active part in the Ashram activities. Ghaffar Khan's 12 year old son Abdul Ali and his 14 year old daughter Mehartaj stayed with their loving father and in absence of their father stayed under the loving care of Mahatma Gandhi, Jamnalalal Bajaj and Mirabehn.

For a couple of years Abdul Ghaffar Khan was wholly absorbed with Gandhi in village reconstruction programme and after the formation of Congress Ministries in some provinces, including the NWFP, he entered his homeland after six years of exile. The Congress President Jawaharlal Nehru paid a flying visit to the Frontier Province. It was followed by a visit from Gandhi between 1 and 8 of May 1938.

Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, in his own right had evolved himself as an esteemed leader of the resurgent nation. He was seen taking a leading part in the various movements launched by Mahatma Gandhi, which included the Individual Civil Disobedience movement and the momentous "Quit India" movement in 1942.

From 1942, onwards the years that followed were immensely important for India. There were talks and discussions on the future of India which saw their culmination in its partition. Abdul Ghaffar felt very sad and heavy at heart. He and his Khudai Khidmatgars had cast their lot with the Congress. And now it seemed as if they would no more belong to India. Nor, owing to their ideological differences with the Muslim League, would they have any place in Pakistan. 'We shall be outcasts in the eyes of both' he sadly remarked, 'but I do not worry so long as Mahatma is there.'

It was the last day of Gandhi's stay in New Delhi, Badshah Khan who was suffering from fever refused to take any medicine. He insisted upon pressing Gandhi's limbs at night as before. Gandhi tried to dissuade him but he insisted and said, ‘It is last day. So let me. It will make me well.' He kept himself awake till 10-30 that night. When asked not to overstrain himself he remarked: 'Before long we shall become aliens in Hindustan. The end of our long fight will be to pass under the domination of Pakistan - away from Bapu, away from India, away from all of you. Who knows what the future holds for us?'

The future held hordes of woes for him. It held referendum for the NWFP, an imprisonment for Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan in the new-born Pakistan and destined to be a lone crusader for Pakhtoonistan, as well as for the federal structure of Pakistan. It was the most trying period of his life. He was solely left to himself in the midst of wolves. Even a sane advice from him was taken with a pinch of salt. The newly won freedom had brought subjugation for him and for the innocent people of the NWFP. He and his people had no future in the set-up envisaged and designed by the new rulers of Pakistan. He had to spend 15 years of his life in prisons of Pakistan. Over and above this he was maligned as a stooge of Hindus. In his struggle to attain Justice, he had to sacrifice his health. At one point of time even Jawaharlal Nehru was worried for his failing health and regretted that he could see no light as how to help his old comrade. On 27 May Nehru passed away. Ghaffar Khan in a telegram to Indira Gandhi said: 'Deeply grieved to learn of the passing away of one of the greatest sons of the soil, a noble freedom fighter, who put into practice Gandhi's ideals of love and peace on, earth. Pray Almighty his noble ideals will continue to inspire the people of India. I wish that I could be with you by your side in this national bereavement.'

In September 1964, the Pakistani authorities allowed him to go to Britain for treatment. During his two months' stay there, Sir Olaf Caroe, the former Governor of the Frontier Province, visited him and took him home for rest. Sir Olaf treated him with great courtesy and admiration. During winter his doctor advised him to go to America. The U S Embassy was reluctant to give him visa. The Pakistan Embassy in London opposed his going to Afghanistan or India for treatment. The Pakistan Government requested the Afghan Embassy to refuse him but it was too late as the Afghanistan Government had already given a green signal to his stay in their country.

In a letter from Kabul, Badshah Khan expressed his agony:

Nothing worse can befall us than what we have already suffered and continue to suffer. Considerations of personal harm have never weighed with me. What saddens me is that while we shrank from no sacrifice for the sake of India’s independence, the Congress on attaining it forsook us….We were left to suffer alone.

On 5 April 1965, Vinoba Bhave wrote to console him saying:

I am distressed beyond words to have to admit that in our freedom fight a great injustice had been done to you and you have been practically let down by our friends. But you have borne it all with great patience and fortitude. Your example has been a source of inspiration to all of us.... These days a conviction has been growing within me that in this age of nuclear weapons, politics so called are quite out dated, and problems, national and. international can only be solved by resort to spirituality – “ruhaniat", and I know that you are essentially a man of God with deep spiritual convictions, rather than a man of politics. You have always been a staunch believer in non-violence and self-suffering, may be, after putting you to so much trial, God intends to use you as an instrument in solving world problems! Bashshiris sabireen! - give good tidings to the steadfast.

In the last week of July 1965, Pyarelal went to Kabul the behest of Vinoba to meet Badshah Khan and convey to him personally, sympathy and affectionate regards. In a revealing account of Badshah Khan's thinking and doing Pyarelal in his concluding note said:

'As I took leave of Badshah Khan the feeling uppermost in my mind was one of wonder and amazement at the unconquerable spirit of this man of God, who, having watched from behind the prison-bars with a bleeding heart that the things he had given his life to, broken, had now in the evening of his life, set about undeterred by the overwhelming odds arrayed against him, to build them up with outworn tools.'¹

In India, the national struggle for independence had drawn remarkable persons in almost all fields of activity and each one of them had played his or her best part in building up the nation. Abdul Ghaffar Khan was one of them. He grew independent of Mahatma Gandhi and although they were poles apart in their background and upbringing, both of them spoke the same language and responded in the same way to similar situations. Badshah Khan was loved by people as was Gandhi. In the eyes of people both became the symbols of courage and sacrifice.

The late C F Andrews described Ghaffar Khan as 'a king among men by stature and dignity of bearing'. He was a magnificent specimen of humanity, almost royal in his appearance and character. He was calm and resolute, truthful and clean, sincere and upright. His manners were simple and charming, his heart considerate and hospitable. Fakhr-I-Afghan was the title bestowed by his people on this unassuming person. Like all great men he depended on a few simple and homemade ideas. He lived, battled and suffered for them.

He was not a politician in the technical sense of the word and he detested the fuss and vanity surrounding the politicians. But he knew his job well and was always clear about his stand in the political chess-board of this vast subcontinent.

And yet he was essentially a man of God. Like all true reformers he was against slavery including the subjugation of women. On 15 December 1941, speaking at a gathering of women at Togh in the Kohat district he said: 'Let me assure you that when freedom has been won, you will have an equal share and place with your brothers in this country.'

Badshah Khan's simplicity was phenomenal as was his fearlessness. He had imbibed in him the spirit of Abhaya, and had developed an astonishing capacity to face cheerfully all the difficulties that came in his way. He was born to be a leader and every inch a man.

Think of a Muslim without bigotry, a fighter without cruelty, a foe without venom and a friend without an iota of treachery. You will surely find these virtues incarnated in Abdul Ghaffar Khan. He was the man of the masses who never stooped to win, a citizen without malice, a neighbour as decent as one could be. He was brave without being reckless, a leader without any desire of aggrandisement and above all the only man in India whom the nation thrice proffered the honour of the Presidentship of the Indian National Congress and which he thrice declined. Perhaps he believed in what Confucius had said: 'By gaining people, the kingdom is gained, by losing the people, the kingdom is lost.' Badshah Khan never lost his kingdom.

Khudai Khidmatgar

2008-06-12T00:01:00.001-07:00

Khudai Khidmatgar literally translates as the servants of God. It represented a non-violent freedom struggle against the British Empire by the Pashtuns of the North West Frontier Province(Pukhtunistan). The movement was led by Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (Bacha Khan/Badshah Khan).

Conditions prior to the movement

At the turn of the last century Pakhtuns ociety was colonized, stagnant, and violent,worn down by feuds, inequalities, factionalism, poor social cooperation, andplain ignorance. Education opportunities were strictly limited. Pukhtuns are Muslim; Mullahs were known to have told parents that if their children went to school, they would go to hell. Bacha Khan stated that “the real purpose of this propaganda”was to keep Pakhtuns “illiterate and uneducated”, and hence his people “were the most backward in India” with regard to education.

Ali Khan

2008-06-11T23:58:00.000-07:00

Ali Khan was the youngest son of Bacha Khan. He had dedicated his life to education. He served as principal of various prestigious institutions in Pakistan. These institutions include Islamia College in Peshawar, Peshawar University and Fazel Haq College in Mardan.

2008-06-11T23:55:00.000-07:00

Pukhtunkhua Milli Awami Party

Ideological Leader: Khan Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai Shaheed
Chairman: Khan Mahmud Khan Achakzai
Like ANP, PKMAP is also struggling for the rights of Pukhuns of Pakistan. However, PKMAP is rather more blunt about its ideology and for this reason is becoming very popular among young and educated pushtuns. PKAMP has its power base is northern Balochistan, which is a predominantly pushtun area. PKMAP advocates the unification of NWFP, Tribal Areas, Northern Areas and Northern Balochistan into one province called Pukhunkhua or Pukhtunistan.

Bababa-e-Pushtun Khan Adbul Samad Khan Achakzai

Pukhtun nation always had great leaders whose leadership brought prosperity and liberty to the nation.

Pukhtun pioneers and freedom fighters like Bayazeed Roshan, Khushal Khan Khattak, Sher Sha Suri, Mirwais Neka, Ghazi Amanullah Khan, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (Bacha Khan) and Baba-e-Pukhtun, Khan-e-Shaheed Khan Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai fought for the freedom of Afghan Pukhtun nation and lived their lives for one cause, which was to keep the nation independent and live like honorable human beings on their home land.

In 1907 on south Pukhtunkhua’s (Balochistan) horizon, a blooming star was born, showing signs for liberty, equality, fraternity and sovereignty. Khan Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai was born in the pious priest family of Maulana Noor Mohammad Khan and Begum Noor Mohammad Khan at Inayatullah Karez near Gulistan, close to Quetta. Maulana Noor Mohammad Achakzai imparted to his son Samad best of religious and academic education to meet the challenges of the closing 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, Samad Achakzai proved worthy of trust reposed in him, by his parents. Samad acquired knowledge of religious education at home and then modern education available at Govt School Gulistan. Samad excelled in both which broadened his horizon to handle hazardous personal and political life.

Early Age:

At tender age of 10 inspired by his political inborn instinct Samad led school student's procession to protest against British imperialists about Afghanistan and Khilafat Movement. Student’s procession went on well without violence, as he firmly believed in non-violence amply proved by his political career, all his life. His successful students procession at Gulistan, however provoked Quetta-Pashin political agent. Samad was reprimanded. His parents were warned against this Samad's semi political activity, believed to be prejudicial to the British Balochistan. Seed of politics already shown in Samad by leading student's procession at tender age of 10, had taken shape of a political sapling. This political sapling led to Samad’s first landing in prison as a political prisoner in Quetta for 28 days. It so happened, when Khan Samad Achakzai raised a group of like-minded young men from Balochistan to back Ghazi Amanullah Khan of Afghanistan against whom British imperialists had conspired to topple him. Samad khan and his colleagues were let off, from Quetta only when the British Imperialists succeeded in Amanullah's ouster from Afghanistan.

Political Career:

Khan Samad's journey began from Balochistan to Punjab in 1929.As a veracious reader with an eagle eye on current affairs; Mr.Samad Achakzai had attained political maturity, as a teenager, on account of two earth moving events. One was Russian revolution in Oct 1917. Russain Revolutionary labor party, BOLSHVIC against imperialist Czar of Russia, brought in to being union of Soviet Socialist Republic(USSR). 1917 October Revolution freed subjugated nations of Russia on the principle of self-determination and equality of nation from the imperialist forces. It emancipated enslaved Russians and established their own Republics, where with their own free will, formed USSR, setting practical example of political ideals for national and social freedom. Such development as the evolution of USSR, had a political impact on the political philosophy of Khan Samad Achakzai who firmed believed in the freedom of Nations from the Yoke of British imperialism.

2008-06-11T23:51:00.000-07:00

An Interview with Rajmohan Gandhi
Grandson of Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi, pioneer of passive resistance, has been recognized as one of the greatest figures of the 20th Century. Albert Einstein said,

Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.

Part of Mahatma Gandhi's legacy is his two grandsons, both of whom are working for peace in India and the world at large. Awesome Library's Jerry Adams interviewed Rajmohan Gandhi, one of the two grandsons, at Portland State University on August 14, 1998. The topic was "How do we achieve world peace within 50 years?"

Awesome Library- "What message would you like to give to the children of the world to help them work on world peace?"

Rajmohan Gandhi- "First we should listen to the children. What is their experience of the world? What are their concerns? What advice do they have for us? They know more of their world than I do."

"Then I would speak from my own experience and share my experience as it relates to their concerns."

Awesome Library- "It makes sense that we should listen to children if we expect to work together with them. What are your views on the root causes of conflict between groups?"

Rajmohan Gandhi-

"Selective history"
"Ambition to play on the hurt and angry feelings of others"
"Leaders helping us escape from economic, educational, and health problems with emotional reactions"
"Finding a scapegoat in the stranger; blaming the stranger"

Awesome Library- "What is the antidote? What will fix this?"

Rajmohan Gandhi- "Humanity needs to realize that there is no 'stranger;' we need to know that the 'enemy' is like us; we need to see the 'enemy' in ourselves. Our 'enemies' are more like us than different. We must realize four things, actually:"

1. "The 'enemy' is me"
2. "Hatred injures ourselves more than those we hate"
3. "Forgiveness is possible; we can be healed"
4. "Perpetrators can repent and be forgiven"

"Blame, hate and war do not help us. We have tried them for centuries, but they do not help."

Awesome Library- "How do we get humanity to realize this? How do we move humanity in this direction?"

Rajmohan Gandhi- "We should use every means we can. Radio, TV, parents, curriculums, charismatic leaders, prayer. We need to become clear about our individual role to contribute in any of these areas. I myself find that prayer is very important."

Awesome Library- "If you were asking world leaders questions about how we can achieve peace, what would you ask them?"

Rajmohan Gandhi-
"I would ask world leaders these questions:"
"What was the most difficult experience of your life?"
"What was the most hope-giving experience of your life?"
"What major step in your life would you do differently?"
"If you had only 60 seconds to address humankind, what would you say?"

Awesome Library- "Thank you for taking the time to speak to us on how we can create world peace."

And, dear readers, if you had only 60 seconds to address humankind, what would you say? Let us hear from you.

Rajmohan Gandhi

2008-06-11T23:49:00.000-07:00

1935, New Delhi, India) is a biographer and grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. His maternal grandfather was C. Rajagopalachari Rajaji, the first Indian Governor General of independent India and one of the foremost freedom fighters. Rajmohan's father was Devdas Gandhi, who was the Managing Editor of the Daily Hindustan Times. A product of the Modern School in New Delhi, Rajmohan is a journalist and political activist. Gandhi, a research professor at the Centre for Policy Studies in New Delhi, India, has written widely on the Indian independence movement and its leaders, India-Pakistani relations, human rights and conflict resolution. He has held appointments as visiting professor in the United States and Japan and received honorary degrees from universities in Canada, Japan and the Kyrgyz Republic. Professor Gandhi also served as a member of the Upper House of India's Parliament and led the Indian government delegation to the U.N. Human Rights Commission annual meeting in Geneva.

He contested the Lok Sabha elections in 1989 but lost badly. After that, he was tipped to be I&B minister in V.P Singh's government in 1990 but he did not get the position much to his disappointment.

Professor Gandhi's biography of his grandfathers, "The Good Boatman: A Portrait of Gandhi," was published in 1995, and "Rajaji: A Life" of Chakravarti Rajagopalachari in 1997. Rajmohan Gandhi's scholarly record, however, extends beyond his lineage. His major publications includes a biography of Indian freedom fighter and statesman Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and "Eight Lives: A Study of the Hindu-Muslim Encounter." His latest work, "Revenge and Reconciliation: Understanding South Asian History," has just been published. His research interests include the history and current state of South Asia, Hindu-Muslim and India-Pakistan relations, and ethnic tensions and their resolution. His comprehensive biography of his grandfather, Mahatma Gandhi, was published in late 2006.

Rajmohan Gandhi has been actively involved with Initiatives of Change for the last several decades.

Rajmohan Gandhi is married to Usha. They have two children, Supriya and Devadatta.

He currently holds the position of visiting professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

2008-06-10T23:48:00.000-07:00

د ازادۍ قيمت

پتنګ د بلې شمعې ياردی
بلبل دګلو خريدار دی

دليلی دوه سترګې مجنون پيژني
د آزادی قيمت پښتون پيژني

پتنګ خو مينه په ګلزار نه لري
بلبل د شمعې سره کار نه لري
پښتانه ټيټ چاته کتلی نشي
دچااثرلاندې کيدلی نشي
پښتانه ټينګ عزم او همت لري
پخپل ناموس باندې غيرت لري
لکه زمري په ځای د ننګ دريږي
په ځای د ننګ په وينورنګ دريږي
پښتانه بيرته په شاتلل نه کوي
که سريې غوڅ شي دروغ وييل نه کوي
نه دې چازرنه يې پيسو ته ګوري
زوۍ د پښتون دپلار پښتو ته ګوري
پښتون د بدو نه بيزاردۍ
پتنګ د بلې شمعې يار دی
پيسه په ښه سترګه قارون پېژني
دې ازادۍ قيمت پښتون پېژني

پښتانه لوړدي لوړکارونه کوي
تل پيروي دوی دې نيکونو کوي
نه په پيسو چاته اورميږنرموي
نه دې خپل ګورمړي په ګورشرموي
نه سپک حالت نه بيباکي خوښوي
تل ازادي او خپلواکي خوښوي
دچادلاس لاندې ژوندون نه کوي
داسې ژوندون زوۍدې پښتون نه کوي
له خپله حقه تيريدلۍ نشي
دغلامۍ نوم قبلولی نشي
اوس پوهيدلی دۍ پوهيږي پښتون
دچاپه مکرنه غوليږي پښتون
پښتون دې توري طرفداردی
پتنګ دې بلې شمعې يار دی
نه د بل چارسم وقانون پيژني
دازادۍ قيمت پښتون پېژني

دې پښتون خټه دې غيرت ځنې ده
ډکه له ننګ اوشجاعت ځنې ده
پښتانه چاته خپل بدل نه پريږدي
ځان دې دنيا مخکې خجل نه پريږدي
دې زهرو ګوټ څوک هضمولی نشي
حق دې پښتون څوک ستنولی نشي
په خپل وطن پښتانه سر ورکوي
دې صورت غوښې په سنګر ورکوي
دې جنګ په لوبه ازموده دۍ پښتون
نه کوي څنګ باتجربه دۍ پښتون
زموږ پلرونه دا اساس پاتې دی
توره او سپر موږته په لاس پاتې دی
هريوپښتون دې بل نه جاردي
پتنګ دې بلې شمعې ياردۍ
يو اتفاق اويوتړون پيژني
دې ازادۍ قيمت پښتون پيژني

الهي ته شې نګهبان دې پښتون
نکړې زوال نوم اونښان دې پښتون
همه دې علم خاوندان کړې ربه
په خپل کرم يې عالمان کړې ربه
ګوندې نفاق نه په امان کړې پښتون
دې اتفاق په لورروان کړې پښتون
څوک چې پښتون په بده سترګه ګوري
دې بدۍ مخ دې شي دې ده په لورې
زه ملنګ جان يم پروا نه دې وطن
سرمې دی ايښۍ نذرانه دې وطن
خدايه لوګی مې کړې په لاردې وطن
چې عاشقانو کې شم شمار دې وطن
ډک مې له درده داګفتاردی
پتنګ دې بلې شمعې يار دی
دې مريض نبض افلاطون پيژني
دې ازادۍ قيمت پښتون پيژني

2008-06-10T23:46:00.000-07:00

سر مې جار ستا له نامه

سر مې جار ستا له نامه پښتونستانه
ستا نوم مې نقش شوی په ځيګر دی

پښتانه به ژوندون څه کړي بې له تانه
هر يو ايښي ستا په مينه مال وسر دی

سر مې جارشه ستا د لوړو لوړو غرونه
له غيرته چې هر يو جګ تر اسمان دی
صدقه شم ستا د ګرانو پښتنو نه
چې منلۍ ستا خدمت په ټينګ ايمان دی
دښمن کله بری وړی شي له هغو نه
که هر څو مکر و فريب کې پهلوان دی

ميړنو ګويا ښکاره کړ له ميړانه
ځکه سور بيرغ هر ځای کې لروبر دی

په هر ځای کې چې اصيل پښتون زاده وي
خاص الخاص پښتونستان له خدايه غواړي
هغه څوک چې بې غيرت حرامزاده وي
ټيټې سترګې به د بل لور ته ولاړ وي
اولاده به يې پس له مرګه شرمنده وي
د وګړو د پېغور ځنې به ژاړي

خپل اولاد ته پيغور نه پريږدي له ځانه
هغه څوک چې د سوچه پښتون پسر وي

نارينه توب د پښتنو طبعي عادت دی
بلې بلې چې رښتيا سره پښتون وي
دوی ليدلي د ازاد ژوندون لذت دی
مرګ يې بولي چې محکوم د دوی ژوندون وي
څه ناڅه که يې په کور کې عداوت دی
خو دښمن د پاره بيا په يو تړون وي

پښتون نه دی په شا تللی له ميدانه
ټول جهان و ته ښکاره لکه د لمر دی

چې خپل واک او اقتدار يې د ځان نه وي
که نواب وي صدقه شه ما ملنګ نه
عاجزۍ کې څه پروا د انسان نه وي
خدای دې مانه کړي عاجز له نام و ننګ نه
چې په مال و سر ايسار په ميدان نه وي
جار قربان شه د پښتون د تورې شرنګ نه

خو زما ملنګ جان زړه دی پرې روښانه
نن د هر زلمي په لاس د ننګ خنجر دی

2008-06-10T23:45:00.000-07:00

دا زمونږ زيبا وطن
دا زمونږ ليلا وطن
دا وطن مو ځان دی
دا پښتونستان دی

دا دمينې کور زمونږ
دا د پلرو ګور زمونږ
نه ورکوؤ چا لره
دا د سترګو تور زمونږ
نه دی د بل چا وطن
دا دی د شيرشاه وطن
کور د خوشحال خان دی
دا پښتونستان دی

دا وطن دی ځان زمونږ
دا وطن ايمان زمونږ
وايي په خاپوړو کې
داسې ماشومان زمونږ
دا مو د بابا وطن
دا مو د دادا وطن
په مونږ باندې ډير ګران دی
دا پښتونستان دی

ځار يې له سيندونو شم
ځار يې له ډاګونو شم
ځار يې له خوړونو شم
ځار يې له دی غرونو شم
دا زمونږ اشنا وطن
درد له مو شفاء وطن
زړګۍ مې پرې روښان دی
دا پښتونستان دی

دا وطن زيارت زمونږ
دا وطن نعمت زمونږ
دا وطن په دې دنيا
دی لکه جنت زمونږ
دا وطن صفا وطن
زړه د ايشيا وطن
ژوندون د ملنګ جان دی
دا پښتونستان دی

REHMAN BABA POETRY3

2008-06-10T23:41:00.000-07:00

خوی که په دا شان وي دل ازار ستا
څه ښادي به کاندي طلبګار ســــتا

حيف چې اورېدی شي ليدی نشي
حسن لطافت دې پريوار ستا

بيا دوباره نه ګوري وبل ته
هر چا چې ليدلی دې رخسار ستا

خدای زده چې ته يار د کوم يوه يې
هر طرف ياران دي صد هزار ستا

ځای د پښو ايښودو مونده نشي
هومره عاشقان دي په دربار ستا

بل هسې نه وي که يې خدای کا
ما غوندې خاکسار او هوادار ستا

عشق له حسنه، حسن دی له عشقه
ته نګار زما يې، زه نګار ستا

ته زما مطلوب يې زه طالب يم
ته زما طبيب يې زه بيمار ستا

ته که تازه ګل د نوبهار يې
زه يم عندليب په لاله زار ستا

جور که جفا ده که ستم دی
واړه مې منلي دي يکبار ستا

جور په چا څوک په بها پيري
زه يم د جورونو خريدار ستا

يو تار که ضايع شي ستا د زلفو
ځان به صدقه کړم تر هر تار ستا

سل ازمايښتونه دې راوکړه
حيف دی چې لا نشي اعتبار ستا

تېر يم زه "رحمان " له هره کاره
اوس مې ملا تړلې ده په کار ستا

REHMAN BABA POETRY2

2008-06-10T23:40:00.000-07:00

چې له تاسره په سر کاندي سودا
بل به نه وي هسې ما غوندې شيدا

نه به ما غوندې شيدا وي په جهان کې
نه به تا غوندې دلبر شي بل پيدا

ما په صبر تا په جور او جفا وکړه
ولې نشي د ژړا په ځای خندا

بې دا ستا له مخه کون دی که مکان دی
ښه توښه مې نه په دا شي نه په دا

جدايي به دې هيڅ رنګ قبوله نکړم
څو مې نه وي روح کالبوت سره جدا

لکه وروستو مقديان وړاندې امام وي
ما په تا پسې ده کړې اقتدا

زه يو نه يم درست جهان په تا مين دی
که بادشاه دی ددې دهر که ګدا

کشکې خط دې مانيه وما راکړې
چې له ماسره وعده کړي د فردا

زه پخپله په تا نه يم مين شوی
ستا له رويه په ما شوې ده ندا

زه په تا باندې مين يم له ازله
نه چې کړې مې نن ورځ ده ابتدا

چې دا ستا د عاشقۍ په تيغ شهيد شم
د " رحمان " غاړه به هله شي ادا

د "رحمان " و زيړي رنګ وته نظر کړه
چې مدام په تاپسې کاندې ژړا

REHMAN BABA POETRY1

2008-06-10T23:39:00.000-07:00

که صورت د محمد نه وی پيدا
پيدا کړې به خدای نه وی دا دنيا

کل جهان د محمد په مخ پيدا شو
محمد دی د تمام جهان ابا

نبوت په محمد باندې تمام شو
نشته پس له محمده انبيا

نور هاله د محمد وه په جهان کې
چې بوی نه وه د ادم او د هوا

په صورت کې اخرين دی پيدا شوی
په مانا کې اولين دی تر هرچا

خدای يې مه ګڼه بېشکه چې بنده دی
نور يې کل واړه صفات دي په رښتيا

که نبي دی، که ولي دی که عاصي دی
محمد دی د همه واړو پېشوا

چې يې دين د محمد دی قبول کړی
حبشي دی، که فاسق دی که تارسا

محمد د ګمراهانو رهمنا دی
محمد دی د ړندو د لاس عصا

که رڼا ده پيروي د محمد ده
که نه نشته په دنيا بله رڼا

محمد د بې چاروو چاره ګر دی
محمد دی هر دردمند لره دوا

زه "رحمان " د محمد د در خاکروب يم
که مې خدای نه کا له دې دره جدا

ځـــــــــوانه

2008-06-10T23:38:00.001-07:00

وران دی ګلستان دې ای بلبله ! د پښتون د باغ
نوم د رقيب ليک دی په هر بوټي د مجنون د باغ

خوار او زار بچي دې بې هنره بې کماله دي
غوږ يې دي کاڼه لاسونه شل سترګې بې پرکاله دي

لال ډوب دی ايرو کې او مرجان پروت دی په خاورو کې
زوی د شهباز ګرځي چمړۍ خوري په سيل د واورو کې

پاڅه ای ځلميه ! مستي توره او ايمان واخله
شړق شه، اور شه، تندر شه او نر شه خپل جانان واخله

توره دې راواخله ننګ پښتو او اسلام پورته کړه
له خپلو مستو سترګو دې نامه د غلام پورته کړه

پاڅه ننګياليه ! نن دلبر او جانان وګټه
نوم د پښتون وګټه ناموس د افغان وګټه

ټول جهان حيران کړه د خپل ځان په تماشا
ای د احمد ځويه او بچيه د شېرشا!

GHANI KHAN (GHAM)

2008-06-10T23:36:00.001-07:00

په غمونو کې خندا کړه

په غمونو کې خندا کړه
په خندا کې غم هېر نکړې
او د ډېرو په خندا کې
چې قيمت د کم هېر نکړې
د وصال په لمغړو کې
د فــــراق ستم هېر نکړې
دا چې ته يې سترګو ته خاندې
ددې سترګو غم هېر نکړې
د الله الله پـــــه شــــــور کــــې
چــــې صنم صنم هېـر نکـــړې

GHANI KHAN(DUA)

2008-06-10T23:35:00.003-07:00

دعا

سترګو د جانان کې زما ښکلي جهانونه دي
وادېخله دنيا زه وږی ستا د دنيا نه يم

ګوره د فقير کچکول کې تاج د سکندر پروت دی
زه يم د سخيانو د شومانو ګدا نه يم

زه يې په غرور درنه د مينې په نوم غواړمه
زه ملنګ بې نيازه ستا د وير واويلا نه يم

يو د سپوږمۍ څاڅکی درنه ټيک له د جانان غواړم
زه يم د خوبونو د لعلونو ګدا نه يم

هغه مستي غواړم چې يې مرګ نشي وژلی
زه دې د غمونو د بېګا او سبا نه يم

تشه دنياګۍ که دې بښې نو ای اميره!
ستا شوه ستا دنيا زه وږی ستا د دنيا نه يم

Ghani khan poetry(baba ta)

2008-06-10T23:33:00.000-07:00

بـــابـــا ته

ستا خطونه ټول زما سر ته پراته دي
زه يې لولم هره شپه دوباره دوباره

کله خاندم کله ژاړم لېونی يم
ای زما په بند کې پروت غريبه پلاره

نه، ته نه يې غريب ته ډېر لوی اوچت يې
مصيبت دی ستا غيرت ته غيرت داره

چې په تا کې کوم ګوهر دی ماکې نشته
ستا نيکي زما بدي دواړه بې شماره

ته سالار يې د کاروان په نېغه لار ځې
زه کوږ زغلم لکه او ښه بې مهاره

ستا د زړه فواردې ډکې دي د مينې
زما زړه وچ کوهي نه لري يو داره

پروا نشته که په منډه منډه مړ شم
فقط ستا او د خپل قام د نوم لپاره

Pashtuns Of Afghanistan

2008-06-09T03:38:00.000-07:00

The PATHAN people form the dominant ethnic and linguistic community, accounting for just over half the population. Tribally organized, the Pathan are concentrated in the east and the south. As they gained control over the rest of the country in the 19th century, however, many of them settled in other areas too. The Pashtuns mostly speak Pashtu (although some residing in Kabul and other urban areas speak Dari) and are generally Sunni Muslims. They are divided into tribal and sub-tribal groups to which they remain loyal. These tribal divisions have been the source of conflict among Pashtuns throughout their history. Even today, the Pashtun parties are divided along tribal lines. The majority of Pashtuns make their living off of animal husbandry and agriculture as well as some trade. In Afghanistan, Pashtuns have traditionally resided in a large semi-circular area following the Afghan border form north of the Darya-e-Morgab east and southward to just north of the 35' latitude. Enclaves of Pashtuns live scattered among other ethnic groups in much of the rest of the country, especially in the northern regions and in the western interior due to the resettlement policies of Amir Abdul Rahman Khan, who ruled Afghanistan from 1880 to 1901.

From its founding in 1747 by Ahmad Shah Durrani, Afghanistan has traditionally been dominated by the Pashtuns, who before 1978 constituted a 51% minority in the country. However, as a result of the 1979 Soviet invasion the population distribution in Afghanistan has changed. About 85% of the 6.2 million Afghan refugees who fled to Iran and Pakistan and around the World due to the Russian invasion and the war that followed it are Pashtuns. This, accordingly, lowered the percentage of Pashtuns inside Afghanistan temporarily and raised the percentages of the country's other ethnic groups. By the mid-1990s many of the refugees returned restoring the Pashtuns to their status of the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan constituting about 45% of the population.

The Soviet invasion of December 1979 has been the major determining factor in Afghanistan's ethnic relations since that point in time. From that time Until mid-1991 the various factions of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, all dominated by Pashtuns, controlled the country's government. All other factions either opposed or aligned themselves with the PDPA (with most in the opposition), including several Pashtun factions. It is not within the scope of this chronology to document the constant shifts in alliances between various factions, both between the opposition and government camps and within them. However, it should be noted that most of the factions were ethnically homogeneous and were engaging in a constant shifting of alliances worthy of traditional balance of power theory and continue to do so today. The Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989 has only affected the power relations among the country's various factions but has not changed the fact that they are in constant competition with each other.

The Dari-speaking TAJIK are the second-largest community, accounting for approximately 25% of the population. They are strongly identified with sedentary farming and town life, mostly in the fertile eastern valleys north and south of the Hindu Kush. Some 11% of the population are Turkic, mostly UZBEK and TURKMEN, who live in the northern plains as farmers and herders. The central mountains yield a meager living to some 1.1 million HAZARAS, a Mongoloid people who mostly speak Persian. There are many smaller communities, the most important of which are the NURISTANIS of the high mountains of the east and the BALUCH of the desert south.

AHMAD SHAH DURRANI

2008-06-09T03:36:00.000-07:00

FIRST AFGHAN KING

In normal circumstances Pashtoon tribal does not make for national unity. This was as true in the eighteenth century as it is today. Of the two Pashtoon tribes, the Ghilzai and the Abdali, the Ghilzai in particular had scored spectacular military successes against the might of the Mughal Empire, but they could never administer and control the areas that they managed to conquer. In fact, despite the formidable fighting qualities of the Pashtoon, it was a chief of the Afshars, a Turkish tribe in Persia, who took advantage of the chaos left when the Mughal empire began to crumble.

Nadir Khan crowned himself Nadir Shah and began consolidating his insecure position by expanding from Persia eastwards towards the Pashtoon areas. One of his earliest and most serious problems was how to deal with the Pashtoon tribes and their antagonism towards any prospective conqueror. However Nadir Shah exploited Pashtoon weaknesses so effectively that, by his death in 1747, Pashtoons were not only his trusted followers but also formed his personal bodyguard. His own kinsfolk and other Persian tribes he regarded as a threat. He played on the rivalries between the Ghilzais and Abdalis, using the latter to fight against the former. He exiled whole sections of them and other tribes and then incorporated many of the chiefs from both tribes into his Persian army.

In 1747 Nadir Shah was assassinated, leaving the Pashtoons in his army heavily outnumbered and under great threat from the Persians. The Pashtoon chiefs met and held a jirga to try to find some form of leadership and a common policy to regain their lands in Afghanistan and keep the Persians out. The jirga chose 23-year-old Ahmad Khan. He was young, a good warrior, and came from one of the smaller clans of the Abdali, and was thus regarded as less likely to be a threat to the powerful chiefs of the larger clans.

Ahmad Shah became King of a people whose lives were governed by this established tribal system, which is still very persistent up to this day. He was elected by representatives of the western tribes, whom Ghubar lists as follows: 'Nur Mohammad Khan Mir Afghan, leader of the Ghilzais; Mohabat Khan, leader of the Popolzais; Musa Khan, leader of the Ishakzais; Nasrullah Khan, leader of the Nurzais; Jamal Khan, leader of Barakzais; and others'. Although the majority of the chief who elected him was from the Abdali and Ghilzai subtribes, non-the less other [non-Pashtoon] minorities were also represented, such as the Qazilbash and the Turkomans. The new King was well aware of the jealousy and antagonism existing between tribes, and he never tried to interfere in their local matters. He brought representatives of the khans and maliks [chief, usually land-owning] to his council of nine elders. This council, which was one of the most democratic features of his governmental system, was infect representing the whole tribal network. Its members could be elected or re-elected as seen fit both by the King himself and by the people they represented. Ahmad Shah consulted this council on many important matters, such as the raising of taxes, the army, or declarations of war. Having had the consent of this body, his action was thus very much in line with public opinion. As an Afghan himself, he knew exactly how far he could go, and never attempted to violate any tradition, even though it might be hindering the fulfilment of his ambition for a strong [Pashtoon] nation.

Finally, but of a vital importance, Ahmad Shah exemplified to his fellow Pashtoons all that an ideal Pashtoon should be. A good warrior, religious, generous, strong, he was described by a contemporary as: 'Tall and robust, and inclined to being fat. His face is remarkably broad, his beard very black and his complexion moderately fair. His appearance upon the whole is majestic and expressive of an uncommon dignity and strength of mind.' He was a man to whom being a Pashtoon was more important than the trapping of decadent kingship--trapping which to his fellow tribesmen were more associated with the Persians or Mughals. His well-known statement, 'Nowhere in the world can replace the ground on which one crawled in childhood' ,stamped him as being a Pashtoon first and an empire-builder second. He was a man of charisma, who, like the famous Khattak chief Khushal before him, was able to express some of his Pashtoon qualities in poetry:

By blood, we are immersed in love of you

The youth lose their heads for your sake.

I come to you and my heart finds rest

Away from you, grief clings to my heart like a snake.

I forgot the throne of Delhi

When I remember the mountain tops of my Pashtoon land

If I must choose between the World and you,

I shall not hesitate to claim your barren deserts as my own.

A part of his strength was his modesty. He did not surround himself with the trapping of pomp like so many other Asian monarchs of his time; indeed he did not even have a crown. He claimed to be working as the servant of God and could rely on his devotion to Islam as a further strengthening of his political portion:

I capture every province with the aid of God:

It is with his help that I go everywhere without failure.

Yet I, Ahmad, consider the world worthless and unimportant.

I shall leave the world behind and go to the next, armed only with my faith.

When Ahmad Shah moved eastwards through the Khyber Pass, he was welcomed by the eastern Pashtoon tribes. Wazirs in the south, Yusufzais in the north, and powerful Afridis, Mohmands, Shinwaris, Niazis and Khattaks in between all offered allegiance. It was a unique alliance that was regarded as the most remarkable achievement of his age. Indeed, on Ahmad Shah's gravestone were carved the words:

Ahmad Shah Durrani was a great king!

Such was the fear of his justice, the lion and

The hind lived peacefully together.

The ears of his enemies were incessantly deafened

By the noise of his conquests.

Under no other leader have such disparate tribes united before or since.

From the auspicious beginning of his reign until his death twenty-five years later, Ahmad Shah moulded a major Pashtoon empire, which stretched from Sabsavar in Persia in the west to Srinigar in the east, from Balkh in the north to Karachi in the south. He showed the Persians, Indians and the empire building British that the Pashtoons were a nation and a political threat to be feared and opposed.

Ahmad Shah died at the age of 51. After his death, the resurgence of traditional tribal rivalries, no longer kept in check by a leader's charisma, enabled the old enemies of the Pashtoons--the Sikhs, Turkomans, Persians and Kashmiris--and even other Pashtoon tribes to nibble away at the short-lived empire.

Oh, Ahmad, life passes by for every man;

In other times, [Pashtoons] will take pride in the memory of your sword.

If my sword thunders, brightening the darkness with its lightning gleam,

It is my love for my country that triumphantly conquers in every direction.

Before the death, Ahmad Shah attempted to find the right successor, a son to preserve the unity of the tribes. But the inevitable process of fusion and fission had already begun. Louis Dupree aptly described this process when discussing Afghan affairs of the nineteenth century:

A strong man would rise and unite several tribes into a confederation and expand it as far as his military prowess, political intrigues, and boudoir proclivities (i.e., marrying daughters or sisters of conquered leaders to himself, or to his sons) would allow. At the death (or even before) of such charismatic leaders, his sons, brothers or other close kin would contest for power, fissionable exercise which broke up the empire into tribal units.

Ahmad Shah rejected his eldest son and most obvious heir because, he claimed, he was unnecessarily violent and was not respected by the tribes. He had more faith in his second son, Timur, who was reluctantly accepted by the tribal chiefs following his father's death. But even among his own tribe, the Durranis, Timur did not have the kind of support that his father had enjoyed. Although Timur appeared to be competent administrator, he did not have his father's taste for expansion and conquest. The different tribes lapsed in to their traditional habit of fighting independently and by the time the British had decided an 'Afghan policy' was essential for the well-being of India, the 'Kingdom of Kabul' was both smaller and less stable. Ahmad Shah's twenty-five years of Pashtoon glory had left the illusion of an ordered kingdom. It took the British decades to understand the reality.

Ghani Khan wrote a little skittish poem about Pashtoons

2008-06-09T03:34:00.000-07:00

The Great philosopher Pashto poet Ghani Khan wrote a little skittish poem about Pashtoons that depicts their temperament given below:

The great pot maker of fate was sitting in heaven.

This great potter of fate was making a donkey,

when the order came to make a Khan.

So the potter cut off its tail and sculpted its ears,

on its forehead he put a spot of temper

and in the donkey`s brain he put the disease

of being ahead of everyone, being a leader, and

then he put a beautiful turban on his head and

shooed him towards the world.

Traditional Dances of Pashtoons

2008-06-09T03:33:00.000-07:00

ده پشتنو روايتي اتنړ

With Credits to Pashto Academy

Pashtoons possess a rich culture with all the ruggedness on the one hand and all the softness, romance and beauties on the other. The Pashtoon dances have been defined as a symbol of courage and heroism and present the desire and readiness of a tribe to go into a battle field for Jehad. With heavy and insistent drumming, the dancers who are always male move with uniform rhythm and steps. They dance usually in circles or columns holding different items of daily life (swords, guns, handkerchiefs, etc.) in their hands and mix the crude sounds of their possessions with the rhythm of drums and surnayi (flutes).

Among the dozens of different folk dances known as Atanrh, some are as follow.

Khattak Wal Atanrh

This is a dance of the Khattak tribe and now it is the Pakistan national Dance. It is completely men dance. It is originated from the ancient war exercises by the Khattak tribe. Before going to the battlefield the warrior, Khattak used to dance as their warming up. It is danced with the drumbeat in a particular rhythm. First, the drummer starts with a slow tune, and the dancers hawing swords in their hand come and start dancing in a circle slowly. After some time one large circle is formed, or two circles, whirling swords in their hand and step on according to the beats of the drum. They step on in a circle. It requires the highest skill. The sword of the nearby dancer can injure anyone. As the circle completes, the beats of the drums raise high and the steps and movement gets momentum in the second phase of the dance. In the third phase, The beats go fast and high and so is the dancer till the time of a wonderful jubilation. Then both the teammates sit on ground and the saraki or captain of a team starts running in along circle. He is chased by two players of the opponent DANGAI and try to catch him and make him fall. If they succeed in making fall the running player, he is given out. During the running, the first running player tries to hit the chasing player with his hand. If he succeeds in touching the chasing player, then they are given out, by successfully completing his running to the place where his teammates are sitting. Another of his team player starts running the same way. In the game one of the team losses all the players in this way. Those who get out one by one are the losers and the other is winner. It is a very interesting game and requires complete physical fitness. Elderly people and the persons with less stamina are withdrawn one by one, to the outer circle they retire and the dance is going on. Those who can step properly to the beat of the drum in fast moving and can artistically move back and forward and get round about remains. After getting tired, this practice is not carried on further and the person sits and is replaced by the other. It is an artistic as well as exertion game, requiring dance and needs complete command on foot and hand and head. Because rhythmic movement of the head is also part of the dance.

Zulfiqar Khan of the Daily Dawn Islamabad describes the Khattak Dance in a very interesting manner in his article which was published in a special edition of the newspaper.

Mahsood Wal Atanrh

It is too a warrior dance and is special among the hard Mahsood tribe. Originally it is used to dance at the time of war, but latter on became a cultural dance. They dance empty handed and require only large drums. The dancer shows a tremendous jubilation while dancing. Nowadays it is danced with the guns in the dancers hand; loaded guns are taken in one hand, up to the beat of the drum the dancers move forward in a circle. After taking two and half steps each dancer return go turn about, and make up the gun and is caught with the other hand. All the dancers do this in a uniform manner and by completing the turning steps they fire in the air simultaneously. The sound of each of the guns goes on one time and seems to be single big bang. It is a thrilling dance and requires complete skill and practice for stepping as well command on rifle or gun, otherwise humiliation is faced by those who are unable to go with these thrilling sounds.

Shah Dola

Shah Dolla is the name of the dance specified for the Pashtoon tribe of Yusufzai. It is purely a dance for happiness and merriment, often danced at some happy occasion. It is too danced in a circle around the drummers. According to the beats of the drum the dancer move forward in a circle. With the first beat they open the hands and bring one foot back, with the succeeding beat both the hands are brought together, so is the back foot. With the third beat of the drum the hands clapped and head bowed to the inner side of the circle. The clapping of hands and putting the foot back are done together, so that to make a tune with the sound of the clapping and drum beat. It is too an artistic dance and requires complete timing of the clapping.

Taleban Atanrh

Nowadays the tradition of dancing by the Taleban has reduced to a considerable extent. The religious students studying in the religious schools perform a dance which they called the Atanrh of the Taleban. Those Taleban who lived in the boarding houses in religious schools used to have this dance for entertainment, before going to bed. With rhythmic clapping of hands they used to dance together disorderly or in order. This was just like exercise but had rhythm in it specially the clapping of hands and foot work.

Waziro Atanrh

Waziristan is a large area and has particular Pashtoon culture. Wazir dance is popular among the Wazir who are warrior-like tribe but Wazir dance is beautiful cultural phenomenon. Two drummers and a flute player play a particular tune. All the Wazirs standing around them. Two persons leave the circle; go dancing towards the drummers, and come back dancing in the same manner. During performing both the persons turn around two times at a time once towards each other facing face to face and once keeping faces in opposite direction. After doing this separately they march while dancing to the assembled crowd. As they reach the circle another pair of the performers start and moving forward in the same fashion.

Logari Atanrh

Logaray is a very artistic dance one person or two or more can dance together to the tune of orchestra. Actually Logaray is the name of the area in Afghanistan where this special tune is played by a large traditional orchestra. Boys or girls dance to this tune. It is a beautiful dance because so many variations occur in it in the drum beat. The moment the drum and other instrument are given a pause the dancer sits, by starting again slowly. The dancer slowly rises from the ground and again starts dancing with the tune. Sometime abruptly sitting and abruptly starting of the tune gives appears attractively. Besides the drum beat the harmonium is also used to provide tune to the dancing.

The dance of the Logar Valley is renowned throughout the Pashtoon lands. It is famous for its shy yet coquette nature in which the dancers freeze suddenly during the dramatic stops in the music. The main musical instruments are the stringed Rabab and the ceramic chalice drum Zerbaghalai. The rhythm is sometimes accentuated by bells on the ankles of the dancers.

Marwat Wala Atanrh

Marwat too is a large tribe of the Pashtoons. They have a particular cultural dance of their own, very much resembling the Wazir dance but can be dance for played one by one and by a large number of participants in a circle. The participants grow their hair long enough so that they can be tossed from side to side while they are turning their heads around in violent jerks. This is also done by the Wazir and the Mahsud tribes.

Bhittani Atanrh

The Bhittani Tribe's dance is truly a sight to see due to the colorful jackets with gold embroidery and the white clothes that the dancers wear. The Shirt is a long gown which is like a swirling top when the dancer turns around and around. In his hands, the dancers will hold red, green or blue clothes. Bhittani Tribesmen dance in round circles with elegant footwork combined with colorful wavering of their large colorful clothes.

Chitrali Atanrh

Chitralis love to sing and dance. Though ethnically not Pashtoons, they have adapted their own form of Atanrh known as the Chitrali Atanrh. Any Chitralis can sing and dance but there are also some "experts " that form a group and gather whenever there is an occasion. These people are not professional musicians but mere music lovers. Usually the group consists of 8-10 persons: one or two singers that sing the verse alternatively, a sitar player and a jerrican player. The rest will clap their hands and dance one by one.

Whenever a song starts, a dancer steps in the middle and starts to dance. He will dance very slowly taking small steps and arms spread wide. Gradually, the steps increase speed and finally he will spin round and round encouraged by the clapping of the hands and enthusiastic shouts made by the audience. The dancer is empty handed most of the time but on special occasions, he might be brandishing a sword. The Chitrali Atanrh is very focused upon the movement of the shoulders and the elegant moves of the wrists.

Balbala

Balbala is a Pashtoon cultural dance and common every where but is mostly played and danced in southern tribes. Drummers and flute players in the center play a particular tune and the persons go dancing around them. In the start it is slow but gets moment fast with the drum beat. They whirl and move fast in the circle. It is a cultural dance and performed by the youth on some happy occasions. Apart from these dances, which are called Atanrh, other cultural dances are also performed by the professional or non-professional dancers. One or two professional female dancers dance on different occasions. The times for different dances are specified.

Spin Takray

Speen Takray is a dance performed by a single professional female dancer. In this dance, a special tune of orchestra is played on. This is a saz particular for Pushto cultural folk songs. The dancer wraps with shawl and hides the face and head. Then he dances like a newly wedded bride.

ghani khan pakhto poetry

2008-06-08T05:32:00.001-07:00

Yusufzai

2008-06-08T05:07:00.001-07:00

The ancient history, or even that up to a late date, of the nation now known as Yousafzai, is but very imperfectly, if at all, known in any connected record of successive events. Casual notices relating to it are, however occasionally met with the different native records of the past transactions of the various sovereigns of the two great empires on the natural boundary line between which it lies-- India on one hand and Persia on the other. The position of the Yousafzai on the main road of the communication between these two empires, would naturally ensure for it to participate in the political vicissitudes of each; and, of such having been the case, the ruins and antiquities which at this day abound in all parts of the country, are the mute witnesses.

In all probability, it had been previously traversed by Darius Hypstapes. The earliest authentic account we have of this region dates from the time of Alexander the Great, who, as is well known, marched through it on his advance from Kabul to India in about 326 B.C . From the time of Alexander, to all the following rulers and leaders, the Yousafzai's were always among them and were very much liked by them. At the time of Babur's ruling, in the sixteen century, Babur took Malik Suleman Yousafzai's daughter as his own wife, as she was known for her beauty around the area. Malik Suleman Yousafzai among other Yousafzais would always be present in the wine parties and later when Malik Suleman Yousafzai , along with his son , Malik Shah Mansur Yousafzai, Babur's brother-in-law accompanied Babur to what was then their usual route, through Swat, Bajawar and Kunar and on arrival at Kabul, were received with due honor, whilst as a mark of particular friendship, Babur decorated them all. On his Brother-in-law he bestowed the "tugh" or "badge of honour" and each of the others with Shah Mansur was given a "khilat" or ," robe of honor". Before departing for their homes, Babur, at their own request, settled a long standing dispute as to the limit of the Yousafzai's, and decided that all of the Country till Abua in Swat would be Yousafzai land; with the Country beyond that had no concern.

There is much uncertainty as to the exact date when the Yousafzai's settled in the country that now bears their name. According to Akhun Darwaiza, they came from Kandahar, Afghanistan ; and in their migration eastward, arrived at Kabul when Mirza Ulugh Beg was governor. He succeeded his father Shah Rukh Sultan, who was the son of Taimur Lang, in 1446 A.D. The whole of Peshawar district had already been colonized by different Afghan tribes; and, on his second visit, fourteen years later, he found that the Yousafzai's had spread well into swat. The settlement of the Yousafzai's in their present limits, on these data, must, therefore, have been between and subsequent to the dates above-mentioned.

An account from the migration from Kandahar of the Yousafzai's, their wanderings, and final settlement in their present limits which are, Districts Swabi, Mardan, Malakand, Bunair, Swat and Dir . It will suffice here to note that they took their present possessions from the Dilazaks, whom, without much difficulty, they drove over the Indus to the Hazarah mountains, after a single but desperate and decisive battle fought on the plain between the villages of Gadar and Langarkot. The site of the latter village is the present Garhikapura, which is near Mardan.

It was not clear who the Dilazaks were, they were supposed to be "Tarkilanri Pukhtoons", but the Yousafzai's dismissed this relationship and took them as from an Indian origin. After setting themselves firmly in the plain, the Yousafzai's pushed on into the hill country beyond , and in a few years were the masters of Swat and Bunair. In 1519 A.D, when Babur journeyed this way, their limit included the lower half of Swat, and it was subsequent to this that they spread into their present limits. For many years after Babur's time, the Yousafzai's under the government of Malik Ahmed and Sheikh Malik lived in peace and prosperity , and devoted themselves to the cultivation of their newly acquired lands, which were about this time divided into hereditary lots and distributed amongst the different clans and their respective families, by common consent, under the direction of Sheikh Mali. The division of the land then made holds good to the present day throughout the Yousafzai Country.

But when Khan Kajoh succeeded to the chiefship, a feud broke out between the Yousafzai's and their neighbors the Ghorikhails, who occupied the Peshawar district. It lasted many years, both sides facing serious loses and injuries. This was finally settled by the great clan fight at Shaikh Patur, when the whole of the Ghorikhails were completely broken and dispersed, and lost numbers of their men and women captives to the victorious Yousafzai's. Shortly after this event, and during the early part of Akbar's reign, the Yousafzai's were further strengthened by the removal of their constant enemies the Dilazaks,. A great many of their families were deported to Hindustan, and their villages were made over to the Mahmands.

Whilst in this part of his extensive dominions, Akbar built the fort of Attak Banaras, and placed his son Salim in it as Governor. It was about this time, that the tribes of Lamghan, Bajawar and Swat quarrelled as to the boundaries of their respective lands. The Yousafzai's who had never yet succeeded in occupying the whole of Swat, seized this opportunity for the advancement of their own interests, and formed an alliance with the Lamghanis, or Lughmanis, and both together ousted the Bajawaris and Barr Swatis, and appropriated their lands. The Yousafzai's took Barr Swat and the hill to its North while the Lamghans took Bajawar.

After setting down, agents came several times from the government to get their government dues but the Yousafzai's drove them out. This called for the emperor Aurungzaib Alamgir to enter with his troops, but the Yousafzai's did not wait for them and made a strategical retreat to the hill. After sometime they came back down and we re-allotted their homes and land. Some were taken as hostages as to be a lesson for the Yousafzai's for the future. After this they kept quite and peaceful during Shah Alam's reign. But in the following reign of Mahomad Shah, the Yousafzai's once again started to disobey government policies and rebelled against the authority of the governor of Peshawar, and laid violent hands on his son who was amongst those who came to collect the revenue. The Yousafzai's continued this in 1725A.D when it was Nadir Shah's reign. as the Yousafzai's were the only Afghans who refused submission to his authority. When the Mughals entered the Yousafzai land, the Yousafzai once again retreated to the hills, but this time the Mughals were harsh and burned down all the crops and lands , leaving the sick and old with difficulties to escape. When the Mughals tried to go uphill to fight the Yousafzai's , the Yousafzai's full of spirit ran down the hill weilding their swords and attacked the Mughals, they in return started panicking and retreated. The Yousafzai's with increased clamor , poured down the hill from all sides and pushed the retreating enemy as far as the Chalpani Ravine. In 1823 the Sikhs became the masters of Peshawar , punishing the Yousafzai on numerous accounts. In 1835, Dost Muhammad Khan came down from Kabul to fight the Sikhs. His troops however retreated without meeting the enemy, but not before they had plundered the whole country as far as the Indus. A couple of years later the Kabul leader came down to face the Sikhs. He was more successful than his previous expeditions, and after a confrontation managed to kill the Sikh general , Hari Singh at jamrudzai. He then proceeded to squeeze from the unfortunate peasants what little the Sikhs had failed to extract. He and his Durranis departed laden with the curses of the people, who declare them to have been greater tyrants than the Sikhs. About this time, Sir Alexander Burnes arrived at Kabul. His mission led to the advance of a British army into these lands in 1828. In 1841 acquired the memorable revolt at Kabul. In the following year came the avenging army under general Pollock. His troops performed only in time to join the Sikh campaigns that brought them into Punjab in 1845-46, and ended with the establishment of the British rule through all the country, as far as Peshawar in 1819. This then led to the colonization of the area. However, the Yousafzai still with their old traditions and rules led their normal life style and continue to do so until now.

Jamaluddin Afghani

2008-06-08T05:02:00.000-07:00

Introduction

Hundred and seventy years ago at the home of a famous Kunari Sayed of Afghanistan named Sayed Safdar,a boy was born and named Jamaluddin. It was this child that over half a century carried his one man campaign in the name of all the Moslems and oppressed people of Asia, against the colonial powers of Europe.

In fact during the later part of the 19 th century Jamaluddin was the only light and ray of hope. The Moslem worlds were living under colonial suppression, internal discord and poverty, and they, badly were, in need of a leader such as Jamaluddin. No one can deny reading the history of that period, that Afghani was one of the most outstanding figures and redeemers of the East. With all the qualification that he possessed, he was a great political and unique intellectual of his time. The great French philosopher Renan says about Afghani: (Few people have produced on me a more vivid impression; it is a large measure the conversation that I had with him that decided me to chose as a subject for my lecture at the Sorbonne, the relations between the “scientific spirit and Islam……” The liberty of his thought, his noble and loyal character, made me believe, while I was talking with him, that I had before me, restored to life, one of my old acquaintances----Wicenna, Arerroes, or another of those great infidels, who represented to five centuries the tradition of the human mind.”

This statement which is made by a great philosopher of Europe is enough to understand the high qualification of this Afghan genius, who was considered also by late Pandit Nehru as a great religious reformist, by doctor Iqbal and Namek Kamal as a religious revolutionary and defenders of Pan-Islamism, by Professor Edward G. Brown the author of “Persian revolution” as a man who helped to animate the fight of Moslem resistance against the expansion and Domination of European colonialism.

Some people likens the great personalities of history to precious stones like rubies, amber, turquoise, emerald having special glow, shines, color and beauty, but, Jamal ud-Din was like a diamond shining and glowing from every angle. HE was a reformist, religious leader, philosopher, writer, journalist and above all a politician and emancipator of the East and Moslem world. In fact what made Jamaluddin a great hero of the east and an enemy of colonialism is indeed his political activism, who’s effects and influence spread beyond the borders of his own country Afghanistan, and touched the destiny of people from Bengal to the Atlantic shores of Africa.

Considering what Afghani had accomplished as a one man, with empty hands and no support from any quarter against the formidable powers of Europe, facing many odds and intrigues of the western countries and their agents and spies, is indeed a great achievement. Contrary to the views of some contemporary writers such as the Author of ‘Afghani’ and Abdoh’ and many others like him Jamaluddin was the most dedicated and unselfish politician and the leader of the East- that while the whole Asia and the Moslem world were in a deep sleep of ignorance during the 19 th century he was fighting with a power of his pen and the strength of his spirit to emancipate his people from the European yoke. He continued his fight by every means, in every city and country, even in the heart of colonial centers such as London, Paris, Berlin, and Petersburg until he died. Although he was unable to see the fruits of his labor in his life time, but certainly all the seeds which he sowed, bore fruits soon after his death. His home land Afghanistan only 22 years after his death received independence and what he wanted form his own pupil Amir Mohammad Azam Khan was accomplished by another student of his, Mahmud Tarzi through his son-in-law Amir Amanullah during his reign.

In Egypt another devoted desciple Sad Zaglole Became the father of modern Egypt, in Turkey, Namek Kamal and his follower Ataturk did what Jamal-ad- Din wanted to be done by Turks. In India his efforts to unite Hindu and Moslems to fight the British was realized, and all his political and social principles were followed by Moslem and Hindu leaders such as Abdul Kalam Azad and Alama Iqbal as well as Gandhi and Pandit Nehru.

He wanted Moslem unity through “Um-ul-Qura” now this is also realized and it’s headquarter has been established in Saudi Arabia, He was in favour of Arab unity soon after the First World War the Arab League came to function on the bank of the Nile.

Jamaluddin was considered ‘new traditionalist’ as well as ‘Islamic reformist; because of Afghani’s teaching today most of the Moslem reject rigid traditionalist as well as pure westernism, as once Sir Sayed Ahmad founder of Aligarh University wanted the Moslems to follow. The middle of the road policy of Jamaluddin is a proper way for the Moslems to be the followed even at present time.

As I stated above, it was mainly political activities of Jamaluddin which has attracted International and world wide attention because during the 19 th century he was the greatest champion of liberty and self-determination for oppressed people of the East and a great fighter against European imperialism. To achieve this noble aim, he was following five main political principals, some times using each principal separately, and more often together. But in application of these principles in order to help his people, he followed the main British political theory which one of their great leaders once stated:

“The British never had a permanent friend but she had always a permanent interest”.

Poets (Humza Shinwari)

2008-06-08T04:56:00.000-07:00

Amir Hamza Shinwari, the legendry poet, scrip writer, dramatist, and a saint, is

commonly known as 'Baba-e-Ghazal' (the father of Pakhto Ghazal).

Hamza Baba himself testified the fact in a couplet, that:

The crimson of color in your cheeks,
Is the color of the blood of Hamza.
You came of age, Pashto Ghazal,
But turned me into an old Baba

Hamza Baba, son of the rugged mountains of the Khyber agency, born in

Lwargi, a village in the north-west of Landi Kotal, in the house of Malik Baz

Mir Khan, Chief of the Ashraf Khel, a clan of Shinwari Pakhtoon tribe, in

December 1907. At of the age of six, he was admitted to school in Lwargi; from

there, when he was eight, he came to Peshawar and continued his studies at
Islamia Collegiate Peshawar. But he gave up his studies, when he was in 9th class,
and retired to his village. And get married, soon after, according to the Shinwari

tradition of early marriage.

Hamza Baba, later on, joined the British India Political Department as Passport Officer, later he worked as T.T. Officer in the All-India Railways. Forced by his restless nature, he quit the job, and devoted his energies to polish and gloss over the inborn artist. He went to the cosmopolitan city of Bombay-the Hollywood of Subcontinent. There he performed as a dacoit in a silent film 'Falcon': but unsatisfied with, he returned to his homeland. And devoted his life to mysticism, under the patronage and guidance of his murshid (god father), Sheikh Abdul Satar Chesthi, known as 'Bacha Khan'. Inspired by the wonderland of Sufism, which he called the 'haratabad, and a desire to achieve the unattainable. He carved a niche in the awesome of temple mysticism, and lived there for good in the monastery of his soul.

Hamza Shinwari started his career as a poet, when he was in 5th class. According to Hamza Baba, "my poetic nature persuaded me, and I started poetry in Urdu." The first ever poetry of his life was in Urdu. But on the advice of his patron, Sheikh Abdul Satar, he started poetry in his mother tongue, and devoted himself to the service Pashto. A couplet of his depicts Hamza Baba's attactchmetn and gratitude for Pakhto. Accordingly:

The enemy brands it as a language of hell,
To heaven I will go with Pashto.

Hamza Baba stands at the juncture of the medieval and modern Pashto poetry, and can undoubtedly be called the renaissance of the Pashto poetry. He lifted Pashto lyric to its zenith. This is why Hamza Baba stands at an enviable stature among all poets, and a pillar of the Pashto literature. Particularly, Pakhto Ghazal is remarkable: for its construction, expression, style, imagery, and even its diction. Testifying to this, he was crowned and jeweled with the epitaph of 'Baba-e-Ghazal' (the father of Ghazal) in a mushaera, which organized by 'Bazm-e-Adab' (Pakhto Literary Society) under the patronage of Pir Abdul Satar, in 1940.

Hamza Baba was a dramatist and prose writer of his class. He wrote more or less 400 dramas. According to Hamza Shinwari, Hamza Baba has written 200 plays, during his life long association with the All-India Radio that was established in 1935. Some of his well-known plays are: Zamindar (the farmer), Ahmad Shah Abdali, Akhtar Mo Mubarak Shah (Eid Greetings), Dwa Bakhilan (two Misers), Fateh Khan Rabia, Guman Da Eman Zyan de (doubt undermines faith), Khan Bahadur Sahib, Khushal Khan Khattak, Khisto, Matali Shair (the poet of proverbs), Maimoona, Muqabilla (competition), Qurbani (Sacrifice), Spinsare Paighla (the spinster), Da Damano Khar (city of the Professional singers), Da Chursiyano Badshah (king of the Hashish smokers), and Jrandagarhe (the miller). But these are just names and no more, as most of these manuscripts, for he handed over to the Radio in original text, were lost or misplaced. He has written the scripts, songs and dialogues of three mega-hit classical, namely: Laiala Majnoon, Paighla (the virgin) and Allaqa Ghair (the tribal area) both in 1960s.

Hamza Baba has authored so many books of varied subjects: some about philosophy of human life and mysticism, other about love and romanticism, or ethics and social values. Starting with short stories and essays, to some estimates, he has 30 books to his name, including ten books in Urdu. These include: Tazkira-e-Sittaria, Tajjaliate Mohammadia (the refulgence of Mohammad), Jabar Wa Ikhtiaar (Free will & Predetermination), Nawe Chape (new waves), Tashheer da Kaiynat (conquest of the universe), Wajud Wa Sujud (the essence of the apparent), Anna aur Ilm (ego and knowledge) in Urdu and its Pashto version, Insany anna au poha (human ego and knowledge), Zhwand (life) in Pashto and Zindagee in Urdu, and Da Weeno jam (cup of blood). He has written travelogue of his journey to Afghanistan and Mecca. He has translated Rehman Baba's Dewan (collection poetry) into Urdu, and two major works-Armaghan-e-Hijaz and Javed Nama--of 'Shair-e-Mashreq' (Poet of the East), Dr. Allama Mohammad, into Pashto, in 1964 and 1967, respectively.

Hamza Baba remained the incubator and nucleus of the institutions and circles framed for the promotion and uplift of the both Pashto and Urdu, during his life time. For instance he was one of the few who has established the first ever Pashto literary society 'Bazm-e-Adab' that came into being in 1937. He acted as vice president, and remained president until 1950 when it was finally evolved into 'Olasi Adabi Jirga' (National Literary Society). He was nominated vice president of Dairay-e-Adabiya (Urdu Literary Circle).

Hamza Baba suffered, for long, from kidney illness, which he operated at Hyderabad, in 1986, but to no effect and his traveled to the master on February 18, 1994. He was laid to rest in his ancestral graveyard of Ashraf Khel at Lwargi. After two and a half year, his mortal remains were exhumed and reburied at Darwazgai graveyard.

Owing to his services, he was awarded for his epoch making services the Presidential Pride Award by ZIa-ul-Haq in his life time, while the present government is presenting a tribute to him by constructing the Amir Hamza Khan Shinwari Complex at the site of his grave at Darwazgai, Landi Kotal, in the Khyber Agency. Marking the eight death anniversary a ground breaking ceremony of the Rs 3.2 billion project took place at the site his graveyard. The complex is consisting of mazar (coliseum), library, and auditorium.

Hamza Shinwari Baba was, undoubtedly, a flowering spring of extraordinary genius, and has become an icon of universal admiration beyond the barriers of cast, language, color, or creed. Dr. Qabel Khan comments that Hamza Baba "is a virtual stream of friends of friends, disciples, admirers, and well-wishers….Hardly there was any day in his life he was not visited by his admirers and readers…his knowledge of Pashto is simply encyclopedic."

Why my love's face wrinkles in smile in the mirror,
Her loveliness increases and excels tremendously.
Since the inducement of her face is similar to spring,
The amazement of the mirror changed into a garden.
The devout seem sorrow stricken externally,
But he doesn't have any sorrow in the heart.
The human beings have to face some constrains,
On the way of their free will.
You can see glimpses of the beauty in my amazement,
You don't need to have a mirror.
Is it the effect of cosmetics or thy own youth,
Which radiates in thy rosy cheeks.
Since you can't determine the standard of thy adornment.
You, therefore, look at the mirror off and on.

Haji Sahib Turangzai

2008-06-08T04:52:00.002-07:00

If Shah Wali Ullah Dehlvi Rahmatullah Alaihe is the fore bearer of modern Islamic reforms in India, then Haji Sahib Turangzai is without doubt the fore bearer of Islamic reform in the Frontier. Haji Sahib's real name was Fazal Wahid and he was born to the Sadaat family in 1858 at Turangzai; a famous town in District Charsadda. His father's name was Fazal Ahad. The Sadaat family is looked upon with respect because they have brought up many nameworthy revolutionary leaders. Hazrat Sahib's mother was a pious woman who belonged to Hazrat Kaka Sahib's family.

Back in those days, Turangzai was a center of religious learning. Syed Abu Bakar was a renowned Alim of the area and Haji Sahib obtained his initial schooling from him. For further studies, he obtained admission in a famous seminary in Tehkal Payan; a small village on the outskirts of Peshawar. The Muhtamim (caretaker) of the seminary was from the Tariqat of Shah Wali Ullah Muhadis Dehlvi RA. He also held allegiance to Hazrat Najmudin Hadda Mullah Sahib of Jalalabad. The seminary stressed upon cultivating & nurturing Islamic Thought in its students along with giving them proper education. Having this upbringing through to completion of his education, young Fazal Wahid devoted his life and efforts for serving Islam.

After completing his education, Haji Sahib came back to his home town of Turangzai and took up farming to earn a livelihood. He also kept himself occupied with Da'wa activities in the area as well. It was not long that he went to Darul Uloom Deoband where he was introduced to Sheikh ul Hind Maulana Mahmood ul Hasan by the Pashtoon students of the seminary. Haji Sahib grew an attachment to him and in 1294 Hijri, accompanied the Sheikh on Hajj. The group of Haji's was headed by Maulana Rasheed Ahmad Gangohi. Along with them were other luminaries such as Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi. Upon arrival at Makkah, Haji Sahib had the privilege to meet with Haji Imdad Ullah Mahajar Makki where he pleaded allegiance to him. After completing his Hajj, Haji Sahib came to Rawalpindi where he did Ziarah of Hazrat Bari Shah Lateef Rahmatullah Alaihe.

Fazal Wahid had till now had a traditional Islamic upbringing and he already possessed sound knowledge of Islam. His allegiance to Haji Imdadullah Mahajar Makki and his performance of Hajj with them gave further leverage to his stature; hence the people gave him the title of "Haji Sahib". Haji Sahib continued with his Da'wa activities and later on, gave another Bait (allegiance) to Hazrat Najmudin Hadda Mullah Sahib under the Qadri Tariqat. Hazrat Najmudin Sahib was Khaleefa of Akhund Sahib Swat and at the time he was also waging an armed struggle against the British. In many of his campaigns, he had inflicted heavy losses upon them and thus earned name and respect for himself.

The detachment of Greece from the Ottomon Caliphate in Turkey resulted in wide-scale reprisals from Muslims in Afghanistan, the Frontier, and India. Widespread protests were made throughout the region. An open rebellion was launched against the British by all the tribes from Chitral to Waziristan. Haji Sahib Turangzai also took part in an armed struggle under the leadership of Hadda Mullah Sahib when British Cantoments at Malakand and Chakdarra were attacked in 1897. He fought the enemy at the fronts of Malakand, Batkhela, Pir Kali, and Chakdarra. After the demise of Hadda Mullah Sahib in 1902, Maulana Muhammad Alam was appointed his Khaleefa. Maulana Muhammad Alam was also known as Sufi Alam Gul. After this great loss, Haji Sahib Turangzai gave a renewed pledge to Hadda Mullah Sahib's new Khaleefa. In return, Sufi Sahib gifted him with his sword and turban and appointed him his Khaleefa as well.

In 1908, Haji Sahib had the privilege to go on Hajj once again. Upon his return, he started his Da'wa works again and in this regard started touring each village and town. His reform activities concentrated upon ridding the society from social ills; especially extravagant spending on weddings, ridding the muslim populace from debts owed to Hindus, observing non-Muslim customs, etc. etc. He also tried to create awareness amongst the people to solve their disputes and issues in their own Jirgas instead of referring matters to British courts. Haji Sahib established independent schools and madrassas in the areas under his influence. These efforts for promoting education also bore fruit and within no time, over fifty such schools and madrassas were established in Peshawar, Hasht Nagar, and Mardan.

Although these activities were non-political in nature, the British saw them as threats to its own system of governance and education. They accused Haji Sahib of running a parallel government to that of the British and had him arrested and put on trial. On the basis of lack of evidence, Haji Sahib was released but his fellow workers were given sentences of up to three years.

Despite this political victimization, Haji Sahib continued his efforts to promote education. Amongst his supporters and fellow workers, the most noticeable names were those of Khan Adbul Ghafar Khan, Maulana Saif ur Rahman (Mithra), Maulana Shah Rasool Khan (Bara Garhi), Maulana Qari Muhammad Idris (Banda Mallaha), Qazi Sahib Karhwi, Maulana Mira Jan (Ziarat Kaka Sahib), Maulvi Abdul Aziz (Utman Zai), Maulana Taj-ud-Din (Mardan), Maulana Shakirullah (Utman Zai), Maulana Qari Abdul Mastan (Akbar Pura) and Maulana Syed Zaman Shah (Swabi).

In 1913, Sir Sahibzada Abdul Qayum Khan chose Haji Sahib Turangzai to inaugurate the foundation laying ceremony of Darul Uloom Islamia (present day Islamia College). The common people looked at any effort by the British to promote education with mistrust. Sahibzada Abdul Qayum knew that if the college had backing of Haji Sahib, no-one would show opposition to its establishment. The then Chief Commissioner Sir Roos Keppell was also of the view that the most trusted person in the eyes of the people was Haji Sahib Turangzai and with his support, no one would show any opposition to the institute. But both of them were also worried that Haji Sahib might reject their offer. Hence it was decided that Haji Sahib would first be asked to inaugurate the foundation ceremony of the College Mosque. The construction work on the mosque was financed by Haji Kareem Bakhsh Sethi of Peshawar. As expected, Haji Sahib accepted the offer of inaugurating the mosque construction work.

Later, Haji Sahib also accepted to inaugurate foundation laying of the college on the 21st of March, 1912. Sahibzada Abdul Qayum Khan, and Sardar Muhammad Aslam Khan were also present on the occasion. Haji Sahib recited the Kalma Tayiba and placed the first brick. He was followed by others who also placed a brick each and in this way, the first college of the Frontier was established under the approval of Haji Sahib Turangzai.

With the establishment of Islamia College, the British aimed at reducing the influence of Aligarh which acted as a single platform for Muslims throughout the subcontinent to get together. It was the objectives of the British to quarantine Muslims in the frontier from the rest of the sub-continent. Hence they invested heavily in projects throughout the Frontier whether educational, social, or infrastructural. By the start of First World War, things had changed. The attack on the Turkish Ottomon Caliphate resulted in widespread unrest in the Muslim world. Muslims from the subcontinent started their resistance against the British with the "Tehreek e Hizbollah" and the "Reshmi Romal Movement" (Silk Handkerchief Movement). In 1914, a secret meeting was held at Delhi's Fateh Puri Mosque where it was decided that Tehreek e Hezbollah will be divided into two groups; one participating in physical resistance whereas the other chapter advocating Da'wah activities. Under the suggestion of Maulvi Mahmood ul Hassan, Haji Sahib Turangzai was appointed the "Ameer ul Mujahideen" (Leader of the Mujahideen) for the resistance chapter.

Tehreek e Hezbollah's intention was to allow Turk forces to station themselves at the Tribal areas via Afghanistan and then together attack British and other targets in the sub-continent. The British used to conscript locals forcefully and then send them off to Turkey to fight the war for them. Hence the aim was that once the war was brought to British India's borders, this forceful conscription would stop. Unfortunately Afghanistan's emperor Ameer Habibullah Khan was in connivance with the British and had made a pledge not to allow Afghanistan's soil be used for any activities against their regime. At the same time he also kept Hezbollah in the dark and promised full support to them. Hezbollah thus put full faith in the Ameer's word but later repented upon their decision.

Meanwhile, Sheikh ul Hind Maulana Mahmood ul Hasan paved the way for Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad to visit Peshawar. In a landmark gathering, he made the public aware about Ameer Habibullah Khan's double standards and pledged to defend the sanctity of the Ottomon Caliphate. Many in the gathering voiced support and gave a word of honour to Maulana Azad.

On the 12th of June 1915, Haji Sahib Turangzai visited Peshawar and gave directions to Hezbollah's party members at Hakeem Muhammad Aslam Sanjri's house. Haji Sahib's wife had passed away on the 9th of May and thus her Salwekhtai was being held on the 18th of June. Haji Sahib spent all of this day receiving guests who had come to offer condolences. While he was still attending guests, his party workers informed him that the Frontier Government had issued warrants for his arrest on the 15th. At midnight, Haji Sahib left Peshawar and headed for Mohmand Territory along with his sons and trusted friends. The next day the Government came to know that Haji Sahib had evaded arrest. A senior British Official commented that his evasion of arrest is British India's greatest failure in the sub-continent.

Within days of arriving at Mohmand, Haji Sahib along with Mujahideen from Chamarkand accelerated attacks on British positions in the nearby areas. The Chamarkand Mujahideen were under the leadership of Ameer Niamatullah Khan. In August 1915, they attacked a British camp stationed at Rustam in Mardan. The number of injured and dead were so great that sixteen trucks were used to transfer them to hospitals in Mardan. This was not an isolated incident. Maulana Ghulam Rasool Mahar writes that the number of dead and injured in the series of attacks on Rustam was upto 600.

The British realized that it would have been in their best interests if Haji Sahib had lived in Turangzai peacefully rather than operating from Mohmand Territory. They arranged for important figures from Peshawar to go to Haji Sahib to broker a truce but it was out rightly rejected. By the end of the year, Haji Sahib once again made an appeal for Jehad and people from Peshawar, Mardan, and even Afghanistan accepted that call. By 1916, thousands of Mujahideen were stationed in Bajaur and Mohmand. The British had already acknowledged their threat and made further security arrangements at Shabqadar Fort, constructed safety bunkers all the way from Michni Bridge to Abazai Bridge, and put up a 17 mile long electrified fence to ward of the Mujahideen.

Without taking into consideration any of the above security arrangements, Haji Sahib commanded a Lashkar comprising of 6000 men and attacked Shabqadar Fort. The British had already expected the scale of the attack and knew that it would be next to impossible to push back the Lashkar without taking huge casualties on their side. Hence they resorted to aerial bombardment and putting their artillery into effect. A stiff battle was fought and the Lashkar managed to take over the fort. Many amongst the Lashkar earned name for themselves due to their bravery. They included Dawa Jan Khoga Khel, Jan Khan, Ghulam Jan, Sher Ali Khan, Said Meeran, Mia Khan and Hazrat Khan Isa Khel. Of these names, Dawa Jan Khoga Khel is the most celebrated in Mohmand history. He is reputed to have shot a British Officer who was commanding his troops while saddled. After falling from his horse, the Officer fought back and shot Dawa Jan as well. Both the injured carried on the fight by hand and died bravely at the same place together.

In 1923, the British sent their troops to Mohmand Territory to stamp out the resistance. This time however, instead of any bloodshed they managed to sign a truce after which they pushed back their troops. Haji Sahib stayed temporarily in various places after this pact. Many influential in Swat, Buner and Dir were hesitant to give permanent refuge to Haji Sahib due to fear of confronting the British. After many negotiations, Haji Sahib managed to secure a written agreement with the tribes and settled himself in Sur Kamar (Red Mountain). A Darwesh Faqeer by the name of "Gud Mullah" (Limbless Mullah) had engaged himself in building a huge mosque at the place. People would be astonished on seeing the mosque and would comment that there are not more than 10 people for Friday prayers or Eid prayers in the area so what is the need of such a big mosque. Gud Mullah would smile back that Allah SWT will send such a pious person to this mosque that even this big mosque would not suffice to accommodate all his followers. His words were proved right.

Haji Sahib changed the name of Sur Qamar to Ghazi Abad after settling here. It is said that there was shortage of water in the area. There was only one small stream which was enough for ablution needs of not more than fifteen people. One morning, Haji Sahib went there and prayed and cried to Allah SWT. By the blessings of Allah SWT, the capacity of water in the stream grew so much that four watermills operate on the stream which provide water to fields in a area that is roughly 3-4 square miles.

In 1926, the British started a programme to construct a road network in Mohmand Territory so that it is convenient to transfer troops easily if the need for it arises. Haji Sahib vehemently opposed this road network. Two main confrontations were made with the British; one in 1926 and the second in 1927. The famous Mujahed; Faqeer Sahib of Langar also participated in these confrontations. Haji Sahib did not suffer much losses but the British were still successful in spreading their network.

In 1928, Haji Sahib developed an injury in his knee. He grew unable to walk and was confined to his charpoy (wooden bed) only. But his followers would still carry him around while he would be in his charpoy. Despite his disability, Haji Sahib would always be present at every battle. His efforts for the Khilafat Movement and the Hijrat Movement gave fruit. Those who were victimized by the British; by registration of cases against them in British Courts, would come to Ghazi Abad and seek refuge with Haji Sahib. Muslims from throughout the sub-continent would send in their donations and weapons to Ghazi Abad to support the Mujahideen.

By 1930, the independence movement gained momentum in the Frontier. At Qissa Khwani Bazar in Peshawar, the British fired upon protesting crowds, killing and injuring dozens of people. This incident provoked Tribesmen and resistance against the British increased ten-folds. A Lashkar of Utman Khels attacked British positions in Hasht Nagar in May 1930. To stop them in their tracks, the British resorted to aerial bombardment. But instead of pushing back, the Utman Khel's barricaded themselves around Jinday Khwarh. From here, they continued their raids on government targets for quite a number of days. Not long after, the British started to arrest those people who would play any role in the independence movement. Many from Hasht Nagar were rounded up. Meanwhile, a thousand strong Mohmand lashkar was formed under the leadership of Haji Sahib's elder son Hazrat Badsha Gul and they threatened to attack Hasht Nagar if the arrests did not stop. Faced with this new threat, the British started flying reconnaissance missions across Mohmand territory in order to subdue the people. They dropped some pamphlets in Halim Zai warning the locals that if any individual was found facilitating Haji Sahib or any of his cohorts, their villages would be bombed.

The scare tactics of the British did not work and consequently the Mohmand Lashkar started heading for Hasht Nagar. As a result, the Royal Air Force mercilessly bombed Gandhab valley; where the lashkar's food and ammunition supplies were stored. Meanwhile, the British sent a Jirga comprising of seven respected maliks from Lower Mohmand to Hazrat Badsha Gul in order to convince him to pull back but he didn't accept their demands. The lashkar stayed entrenched until 13 June 1930 but they suffered huge damages because of the consistent bombardment of their positions. Many attacks were made on British positions, convoys, and their instalments between 1931 and 1933. But they were not able to reach the British stronghold of Shabqadar because the lower Mohmands had signed a peace pact.

In 1935, the British sent three brigades into Upper Mohmand in order to put an end to the rebellion once and for all. The brigades were given in command to Brig. Auckenlick because of the absence of Maj. Gen. Musprat. One of the most memorable occasion of this conflict was the stand off at Nahaqai Pass on 29 September 1935. Mohmand is comparably a small tribe and their numbers were far less than that of the British but they put a brave resistance and kept hold of the pass. When Maj. Gen. Gough Hamilton toured Pakistan much later, he visited the site of this battle. In those days, Hamilton served as Sec. Lieutenant in the Frontier Force Regiment. He was part of the stand off at Nahaqai and narrated an incident where a group of Mohmand sharp shooters besieged their positions and killed 35 British officers and injured 60 of them in one night only. Hamilton was awarded a DSO by the Queen for his part in the battle.

The British also used bombers in the battle and levelled village after village. They even poisoned lakes and ponds which were one of the main water sources for the Mujahideen. Haji Sahib himself was physically part of the battle at the front of Palaki. His presence was a great source of motivation to the Mujahideen. At the peak of the battle, the British suffered huge casualties. A complete Guides force of theirs was wiped out by the Usman Khel's. In yet another incident, a Mujahed named Mughal Khan from the Isa Khel tribe cut off the head of a senior British officer which left them in complete shock. They sent men to the Mohmands and invited them for talks. A grand Jirga was held at Gandhab which was participated by nearly all well known Mohmand Maliks. After a long discussion, both parties agreed to terms and a peace tract was signed. This was to be Haji Fazal Wahid of Turangzai's last Jehad.

Just one year later in 1936, Haji Sahib fell seriously ill. With time, his condition worsened and his finally his soul left this world on the 14th of December 1937 aged 81. He was survived by three sons and two daughters. His eldest son Hazrat Badsha Gul took over responsibilities after his demise. Badsha Gul also served as president of the NWFP chapter of Pakistan Muslim League (PML) at one time.

Muhammad Zai

2008-06-08T04:52:00.001-07:00

دا قوم د هشتنګر په تپه کښ اوسږېږي چه دا اته ((8)) کلي په کښې دي. تنګي، شير پاؤ، عمر زي، ترنګزي، اتمانزي، رزړ، چارسده، پړانګ. دا علاقه د سوات په سيند اوبېږي ځکه ئې ټوله زمکه څربه او زوروره ده. او خلق ئې اسوده او خوشحال دي. په تيره تيره ئې خانان چه په ټوله صوبه کښ د هر چا نه لوئ او مالدار زميندار دي. او د هغو عزيزانو او اقرباؤ اعلي اعلي تعليمونه کړي دي او په سول او پولس او فوځ کښ لوئ لوئ عهدې لري او د لوئ عزت خاوندان دي. د سرخ پوشو مرکز هم په دې تپه کښ دې. او دلته يو ازاد سکول هم شته. د سول نافرمانې په دوران کښ د دې ځائ خلقو ډير کار کړې دي. که ريښتيا مې پوښتې نو دا خوشحالي او بيغمي او لياقت او تعليم او دا د ازادي خيال د سرکار د امن په برکت د دوئ نصيب شوې دي. ځکه د درانو او سکهانو په حکومت کښ په دې خلقو داسې داسې ظلمونه شوي دي چه تر اوس پورې ئې سپين ږيري مشران خبې کوي او چه بنده ئې واوري نو وجود ئې زيږ زيږ شي. په دې علاقه کښ ډير غير قامونه هم اباد دي لکه دراني، شيخ، اوان، ګوجر، او کشميري.

دا مقاله قاضي احد جان صيب ليکلې ده چې کوم د پښتو مجلې (ستړې مشې) کښ په کال 1932 ء کښ خپرول شوې وه. د دې مجلې خپرونکښې هم دوئي په خپله ول او د مقاله ښاغلي احمد جان صيب راواستولې ده