Jahangir's World Times First Comprehensive Magazine for students/teachers of competitive exams and general readers as well.
Renowned scholar Stanley Wolpert paying very high tributes to Quaid-i-Azam said:
‘Few individuals significantly alter the course of history. Fewer still modify the map of the world. Hardly anyone can be credited with creating a nation-state. Mohammad Ali Jinnah did all three. Hailed as ‘Great Leader’ (Quaid-i-Azam) of Pakistan and its first governor-general, Jinnah virtually conjured that country into statehood by the force of his indomitable will.’
(Jinnah of Pakistan)
‘The year following the demand for a separate Muslim state, named Pakistan, saw the steady rise of Jinnah as a charismatic leader of Muslim India. The response of the Muslims to the demand and Jinnah’s charismatic authority greet together. In the Jinnah, became a ‘living symbol of Muslim unity, Muslims aspirations and Muslim pugnacity. The Muslims saw him as their saviour and man of the moment,’ writes Sikandar Hayat in ‘The Charismatic Leader’.
Jinnah succeeded in his mission because he offered the despaired people, at a particularly difficult hour in their history, a charismatic leadership with faith in himself as well as the cause that he championed. The various stages in the struggle for Pakistan clearly demonstrate the decisive role that Jinnah played in the creation of Pakistan. Indeed, if it were not Jinnah and his charismatic leadership, the struggle for Pakistan could have been lost. Pakistan came into being mainly because of the charisma of Jinnah and his charismatic leadership.
Quaid-i-Azam ably constructed his case for a Muslim state on the basis of ‘Two Nation Theory’. Jinnah wrote in his letter to Gandhi:
‘We maintain and hold that Muslims and Hindus are two major nations by any definition or test of a nation. We are a nation of a hundred million, and, what is more, we are a nation with our own distinctive culture and civilization, language and literature, art and architecture, names and nomenclature, sense of value and proportion, legal laws and moral codes, customs and calendar, history and traditions, aptitudes and ambitions. In short, we have our own distinctive outlook on life. By all canons of international law we are a nation.’
The Private Secretary to British India Army Chief Claude Auchinleck, Major General Shahid Hamid, narrated an interesting event about Quaid-i-Azam, in his book ‘Disastrous Twilight’. This incident manifests the mentality of civil and army officials before independence.
‘To my surprise the Quaid was in a talkative mood. He had something to say to each person who was introduced to him. The officers gathered around him to ask all sorts of questions. He answered them in his characteristic manner – slowly, clearly and convincingly. It is always a pleasure to hear him explain his point of view. He meant what he said. He did not pretend to be what he was not. He did not mince his words. He put the problem which he will have to face squarely. I was with him most of the time. The only time he became solemn when someone asked him about the prospect of promotion in Pakistan. I could see from the look of Quaid’s face that he did not like the question. In his typical style, he looked him over from head to foot before giving an answer.
‘You Mussulmans, either you are up in the sky or down in the dumps. You cannot adopt a steady course. All the promotions will come in good time, but there will be no mad rush.’
To another question, he replied:
‘Pakistan’s elected government will be that of civilians and anyone who thinks contrary to democratic principles should not opt for Pakistan.’
He also said that all would have to work hard to build the new nation and guard and preserve the identity of the Islamic state and that our task was not easy.
Quaid-i-Azam, on the eve of first Independence Day, hosted a reception at the Governor General House in Karachi. Distinguished civil and military officials, politicians and businessmen were invited to the occasion. Quaid-i-Azam was very happy and meeting the guests. One military official asked an obnoxious question from the Quaid about certain appointments by the new Pakistani government. Quaid, naturally hurt and infuriated, replied with faith and courage:
‘Never forget that you are the servants of the state. You do not make policy. It is we, the people’s representatives who decide how the country is to run. Your job is only to obey the decision of your Civilian Masters.’
(Jurnail Aur Siasatdan by Qayyum Nizami)
Quaid-i-Azam could not find time to write a book about his vision of Pakistan however the delivered several speeches as a leader and as the Governor General of Pakistan. We can deduce his vision from the following quotations of his historical speeches.
Quaid-i-Azam in a press briefing on May 21, 1947 at Delhi responding to the question of a journalist who had asked, ‘On what basis will the central administration of Pakistan be set up? What will be the attitude of this Government to the Indian State?†said:
‘The basis of the central administration of Pakistan and that of the units to be set up will be decided, no doubt, by Pakistan Constituent Assembly. But the Government of Pakistan can only be a popular representative and democratic form of Government. Its parliament and cabinet responsible to the parliament will both be finally responsible to the electorate and the people in general without any distinction of caste, creed or sect which will be final deciding factor with regard to the policy and programme of the Government that may be adopted from time to time.’
Quaid-i-Azam ensured the rights of minorities in Pakistan by saying:
‘They will have their protection with regard to their religion, their faith, their life, their property, their culture. They will be in all respects the citizens of Pakistan without any distinction of caste or colour, religion or creed… as long as I have any power; they need have no apprehension of any kind.’
In his policy address on August 11, Quaid-i-Azam said:
‘You are free; you are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place of worship in the state of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed that has nothing to do with the business of the state’
Quaid-i-Azam warned the landlords and endorsed democracy in the following words:
‘I am sure democracy is in our blood. Indeed, it is in the marrow of our bones. Only centuries of adverse circumstances have made the circulation of the blood cold. It has become frozen, and our arteries have not been functioning. But thank God, the blood is circulating again. It will be a people’s government.’
He further said:
‘I should like to give a warning to the landlords and
capitalists who have flourished at the people’s expense by a system which is so vicious, which is so wicked, and which makes them so selfish that it is difficult to reason with them. The exploitation of the masses has gone into their blood. They have forgotten the lesson of Islam.’
(Speeches and statements of Jinnah)
Quaid-i-Azam every now and then elaborated that people are the real asset of Pakistan.
‘There are millions and millions of our people who hardly get one meal a day. Is this civilization? Is this the aim of Pakistan? Do you visualise that millions have been exploited and cannot get one meal a day. If that is the idea of Pakistan I would not have it.’
(1943)
As governor general of Pakistan Quaid-i-Azam was worried about the colonial mentality of the civil servants of Pakistan and advised them to understand the new realities of independent Pakistan. Quaid-i-Azam addressed the civil servants in the following words.
‘You have to do your duty as servants; you are not concerned with this political or that political party; that is not your business. It is a business of politicians to fight out their case under the present constitution or the future constitution that may be ultimately framed. You, therefore, have nothing to do with this party or that party. You are civil servants. Whichever gets the majority will form the government and your duty is to serve that government for the time being as servants not as politicians. How will you do that? The government in power for the time being must also realise and understand their responsibilities that you are not to be used for this party or that. I know we are saddled with old legacy, old mentality, old psychology and it haunts our footsteps, but it is up to you now to act as true servants of the people even at the risk of any Minister or Ministry trying to interfere with you in the discharge of your duties as civil servants. I hope it will not be so but even if some of you have to suffer as a victim ‘I hope it will not happen ‘I expect you to do so readily. We shall, of course, see that there is security for you and safeguards to you. If we find that is in any way prejudicial to your interest we shall find ways and means of giving you that security. Of course, you must be loyal to the government that is in power.
‘The second point is that of your conduct and dealings with the people in various departments, in which you may be: wipe off that past reputation; you are not rulers. You do not belong to the ruling class; you belong to the servants. Make the people feel that you are their servants and friends, maintain the highest standard of honour, integrity, justice and fair play. If you do that, people will have confidence and trust in you and will look upon you as friends and well-wishers. I do not want to condemn everything of the past, there were men who did their duties according to their rights in the service in which they were placed. As administrators they did justice in many cases but they did not feel that justice was done to them because there was an order of superiority and they were held at a distance and they did not feel the warmth but they felt a freezing atmosphere when they had to do anything with the officials. Now that freezing atmosphere must go; that impression of arrogance must go; that impression that you are rulers must go and you must do your best with all courtesy and kindness and to try to understand the people. Maybe sometimes you will find that it is tiring and provoking when a man goes on talking and repeating a thing over and over again, but have patience and show patience and make them feel that justice has been done to them.’ [Speeches of Jinnah]
Quaid-i-Azam said that Pakistan will be Fort of Islam however he defined his vision in the following words.
‘The other and higher aspect of Pakistan is that it would be a base where we will be able to train and bring up Muslim intellectuals, educationists, economists, scientists, doctors, engineers, technicians, etc. who will work to bring about Islamic renaissance. They will spread over the Middle East and other Muslim countries to serve their co-religionists and create awakening among them. The entire belt of the Middle East will develop into a solid, cohesive block’a third block’ which will be neither communistic nor capitalistic but truly socialistic.’
