Munir Commission Report -10: From The Lahore Convention To Arrest Of Ulama In Ka rachi And Punjab PART II

From The Lahore Convention To Arrest Of Ulama In Karachi And Punjab (14th July 1 952 To 27th February 1953)

SECTION 144 ORDERS RECALLED

The Sargodha cases for contravention of orders under section 144 were prosecuted vigorously and as we have already pointed out one of them resulted in convictio n. The case pending at Gujranwala and the other which was pending at Sargodha we re subsequently withdrawn and the persons who had been, convicted in the Sargodh a case were ordered to be released.

There are two notes by the Home Secretary, one dated 17th July 1952, on page 7 o f file No. 16(2)99, Volume I, and the other, dated 18th July 1952, on page 46 of file No. 16(2)93, Volume I, which show that the decision to withdraw the Gujran wala case must have been under the orders of the Chief Minister. The former note reads: As decided at the meeting held on the 15th July 1952, I sent the attached signal to D. M., Gujranwala, who saw me yesterday. I told him that in view of t he fact that the two ringleaders of the Ahrar, namely, Master Taj-ud-Din and She ikh Husam-ud-Din, had been convicted in the Sargodha case, Government have decid ed to withdraw the Gujranwala case. The case must have been withdrawn by him eit her yesterday on return to Gujranwala or today.

The other note reads:

The Gujranwala case was withdrawn yesterday. I sent for the Deputy Commissioner o n the 15th immediately after our meeting with H. C. M. and communicated to him t he decision of Government when he came to see me on the 16th.

Though Mr. Daultana does not admit that the decision to withdraw the case was hi s, it seems to be perfectly clear from the two notes mentioned above that the de cision to withdraw was taken at a meeting of officers in which he was present, a nd the despatch with which the decision to withdraw was communicated to the Dist rict Magistrate, coupled with the fact that a decision of such importance could not have been taken by any officer on his own responsibility, clearly shows that the decision to withdraw the case was, in fact, that of the Chief Minister hims elf. The file shows that on 15th July 1952 the Home Secretary suddenly sent a wi reless message to the District Magistrate, Gujranwala, asking him to see the Hom e Secretary on the following day and that the Deputy Commissioner came and saw t he Home Secretary on 16th July when he was communicated the decision of the Gove rnment to withdraw the case. The only inference from all this is that the case w as withdrawn under the orders of the Chief Minister. We have mentioned that Maul

ana Akhtar Ali Khan and Maulvi Ghulam Ghaus Sarhaddi, the new President of Majli s-i-Ahrar, had come to Mr. Anwar Ali on 5th July 1952 and attempted to assure hi m that if the persons who had been arrested for defying orders under section 144 were released and the orders under section 144 withdrawn, the Ahrar as a party would make a public statement declaring that no speeches would be made by them w hich were liable to disturb the peace and tranquillity of the Province. The offe r was subsequently repeated to the Chief Minister who directed Mir Nur Ahmad, D. P. R., to contact the Ahrar leaders to ascertain from them their wishes. Mir Nu r Ahmad informed the Chief Minister that the Ahrar leaders were anxious to avoid a conflict with the Government and to carry on their agitation in a constitutio nal manner. Accordingly some of the Ahrar leaders met the Chief Minister on 19th July and agreed to issue a public statement giving an assurance not to resort t o lawlessness or violence or to comm.it any breach of the law. On his part the C hief Minister agreed that if such a statement were issued, he would sympathetica lly consider the question of lifting restrictions on their meetings under sectio n 144 and releasing their leaders who had bean convicted. In accordance with the se arrangements, a statement on behalf of Amir-i-Shariat Sayyad Ata Ullah Shah Bu khari, Maulvi Muhammad Ali Jullundri, Nazim-i-Ala, Majlis-i-Ahrar, Sahibzada Faiz -ul-Hasan, member, Working Committee, Majlis-i-Ahrar, and Maulana Muhammad Hussa in Ghazi, Salar-i-Ala, Juyush-i-Ahrar-i-Islam, was published in the Afaq of 21st Ju ly 1952. This statement was to the effect that in their struggle to have the Ahm adis declared a non-Muslim minority and to have Chaudhri Zafrullah Khan removed from the office of Foreign Minister, the Ahrar had in the past done nothing ille gal, that they did not intend to do anything in future which might give grounds for an apprehension of violence, disorder or breach of law, that they considered the Punjab Government as their own Government, that the responsibility with whi ch that Government, had been entrusted to maintain law and order was the Ahrars o wn responsibility to discharge which they would fully co-operate with the Govern ment, and that it was not only the civic but religious obligation of the Ahrar t o defend the life, property, honour and freedom of all citizens of Pakistan irre spective of their religious beliefs. On publication of this statement, the Chief Minister issued the following statement in the Civil & Military Gazette of 22nd J uly 1952: I welcome the latest declaration of policy by leaders of the Majlis-i-A hrar, Punjab and their assurance that they would give my Government full coopera tion in the maintenance of law and order. As they have rightly emphasised it is not o nly the national but also a religious duty of the Muslim majority in Pakistan to guarantee full protection for the life, property, honour and civil rights of ev ery citizen of this country irrespective of his or her creed or caste.

For sometime past there have been restrictions in various districts of the Punja b on the holding of public meetings or demonstrations by Ahrar workers. The sole object of the orders imposing these restrictions was preservation of public pea ce and order in the Province. In view of the declaration made by Ahrar leaders i t does not seem necessary to continue the restrictions as far as members of thei r organisation are concerned. Instructions are, therefore, being issued to the d istrict officers concerned to withdraw or suitably modify their orders under sec tion 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Simultaneously a telegraphic message went from the Home Secretary to all Distric t Magistrates informing them on 21st July 1952 that in view of the assurances gi ven, by the Majlis-i-Ahrar-i-Pakistan to the Chief Minister and his acceptance o f the assurances, orders under section 144, Criminal Procedure Code, prohibiting public meetings were to be withdrawn. And on 26th July the Home Secretary sent a wireless message to the District Magistrate and the Superintendent Jail, Mianw

ali, informing them that Government had remitted the unexpired sentence of Maste r Taj-ud-Din Ansari and that he should be released forthwith. On the same day a similar message was sent to the District Magistrate and. the Superintendent Jail , Jhang, directing the release of Sheikh Husam-ud-Din.

Just as the decisions taken in the conference of 5th July were a confession of h elplessness to face and solve the issue whether Muslims were entitled publicly t o speak in mosques on khatm-i-nubuwwat, the decision to withdraw orders under se ction 144 and pending cases arising from contraventions thereof and to release p ersons who had been found guilty of contravening those orders, had the effect of nullifying earlier decisions that the Ahrar had to be isolated and that eases a gainst them which had been declared to be cognizable and non-bailable were to be vigorously pursued. The decisions of 5th July had restricted the District Magis trates powers to make arrests in or disperse meetings inside or outside the mosqu es and the decision of 2lst July amounted to an official recognition of the posi tion that, provided the Ahrar did not assault the Ahmadis or rob their property or otherwise violate their honour, they were at full liberty to do whatever they liked to popularise the demands and to speak in whatever strain they liked agai nst Ahmadis, their leaders and their beliefs. Hereafter there was no question of suppressing the spate of hatred that had been let loose against them or of doin g anything to stop the gathering storm.

There is some difference in the evidence as to the date on which the undertaking by the Ahrar, which was published in the newspapers of 21st July, was given. Ac cording to Mr. Daultana, a deputation of the Ahrar led by Maulvi Muhammad Ali Ju llundri met him in his office, probably on 18th July, in the presence of some of ficers. But from a question put by Mr. Yaqub Ali to Mir Nur Ahmad, it appears th at the deputation waited on the Chief Minister on 19th July. An understanding be tween the Government and the members of the deputation having been arrived at, t he question was taken up of drafting an appropriate statement. According to Mir Nur Ahmad and Mr. Ibrahim Ali Chishti, the draft of the terms in which the under taking was to be published was considered in a meeting of the Ahrar leaders and themselves and was later published in the newspapers.

Maulana Muhammad Bakhsh Muslim states that present in that conference were Maula na Abul Hasanat, Sayyad Ata Ullah Shah Bukhari, Sahibzada Faiz-ul-Hasan, Maulana Ghulam Muhammad Tarannum and Maulana Muhammad Bakhsh Muslim himself, and that t he date of this conference was after the Multan firing, namely, on or after the 19th July. The conference was held at the premises of a workshop in Badami Bagh. As there is no record either of the leaders interview with the Chief Minister or of the subsequent conference and Mr. Daultana himself is not definite about, th e date, we are inclined to accept the statement of Maulana Muhammad Bakhsh Musli m that this conference of the leaders with Mir Nur Ahmad and Maulvi Ibrahim Ali Chishti took place after the Multan firing and this is not only more likely but confirmed by a letter of the Punjab Government sent in reply to an inquiry by th e Prime Minister about the incident. That being so, the announcement of the sett lement with the Ahrar, coming as it did after the Kup incident, amounted to a pu blic declaration that the Government was anxious to come to an understanding wit h the Ahrar at any cost.

THE KUP INCIDENT

At this stage it is necessary to give a brief account of the Kup incident itself . Contrary to the general belief that had come to be held by district officers t hat processions and public meetings, though banned by orders under section 144, were not to be dispersed, a Sub-Inspector of Police attached to Police Station K up in Multan had seen the absurdity of such orders being made and constantly dis obeyed. Accordingly, on 18th July this officer took it into his head to disperse a public meeting or procession in Multan by the use of force. This was taken as an affront by an impertinent officer and an insult to the honour of the Holy Pr ophet. Accordingly, on the following day an infuriated mob of about 5,000 gather ed round the Kup Police Station and demanded the transfer of the impudent Sub-In spector. The higher officers present attempted to pacify the crowd but without a ny result. The railing of the Police Station gave way to the weight of the crowd leaning against it and the mob entered the precincts of the Police Station itse lf. A squad of fifteen foot constables came out to lathi-charge the trespassing crowd but they were met with, a shower of brickbats and had to recede. Then some body attempted to set fire to the building and the police opened fire, killing t hree and injuring thirteen of whom three died in the hospital.

Protest meetings against the Multan firing and expressing sympathy with the kill ed and the wounded were held in several places and eventually an inquiry into th e incident was held by a Judge of the High Court who found that the firing was j ustified. Though the persons who were killed or wounded were members of an unlaw ful assembly and thus offenders under the law of the land, they were publicly de scribed in several meetings as martyrs, and the Ahrar advertised a meeting at Mu ltan for 29th August 1952 to celebrate their chehlum. The D. I. G., C. I. D., su ggested that the meeting be banned but the Chief Minister disapproved of the pro posal and agreed merely to the administration of a warning to the Ahrar. The pro posal that after the administration of the warning a press note should be issued by Government, was also disapproved by him.

Again when the Home Secretary inquired whether a general warning should be admin istered to the Ahrar leaders, the Chief Minister replied that Government need no t bother about a general warning at that stage.

MUSLIM LEAGUE

By now the demands began publicly to be supported by Muslim Leaguers and several poster and handbills signed by members and office bearers of the League appeare d in the districts of Lahore, Lyallpur, Jhang and Sheikhupura. Muslim Leaguers a lso began to preside over khatm-i-nubuwwat meetings organised by the Ahrar.

It also came to the notice of the President of the Punjab Provincial Muslim Leag ue that members of the League were presiding at the meetings of other political parties. He, therefore, thought it necessary to define the policy of the League and on 1st April, 1952, issued the following press statement:

It has come to my notice that at some places in the Province prominent members of the Muslim League organisation including, in some cases, even the Presidents of the District Muslim, Leagues have presided over Ahrar conferences. It must be m ade clear that to preside over the conferences of another organisation is a brea ch of discipline of the Muslim League. I am, therefore, to direct that no member of the Muslim League organisation shall in future preside over meetings which a re sponsored or conducted by organisations other than the Muslim League. This of course does not include participation in functions which are of a purely social or non-political nature; but the definition of political may be interpreted very strictly and not loosely. It is absolutely necessary that members of the Muslim League do not take part in any activity which is likely to create hostility or i ll-feeling between the citizens of Pakistan or to revile and condemn particular sections or groups of the citizens of Pakistan. and on the basis of this statemen t a circular letter, dated 3rd April, 1952, was sent to all District and City Mu slim Leagues, wherein the members of the Muslim League were prohibited from pres iding over non-Muslim League meetings, excluding social and non-political meetin gs, and it was emphasised that members of the Muslim League should not take any part in activities which might create estrangement or enmity between different c lasses of Pakistan citizens or which were directed against any particular class or section of Pakistan subjects.

Despite this direction, however, Muslim League branches in districts and towns b egan to ally themselves with the movement that was rapidly spreading. It has alr eady been pointed out that some persons were being prosecuted in Sargodha and Gu jranwala for contravening orders under section 144 for taking part in public mee tings in mosques organised by the Ahrar. On 17th July, 1952, the City Muslim Lea gue, Gujranwala, held a meeting and passed the following resolutions:

1. That the doctrine of khatm-i-nubuwwat is a fundamental doctrine with Muslims. 2. That the City Muslim League strongly disapprove the application of orders und er section 144 to mosques and regards such orders not only unnecessary but a dir ect interference with the religious observances of the people and strongly deman ds of the Government to withdraw such orders. 3. That the City Muslim League demands of the Government that all cases arising out of the contravention of section 144 orders be withdrawn and the persons arre sted for such contravention released. 4. That the City Muslim League should give legal assistance to those who have be en arrested for gathering in mosques in contravention of orders under section 14 4.

Three days later, i.e., on 20th July, 1952, the City Muslim League, Sargodha, al so passed the following resolutions:

(1) That the City Muslim League unanimously supports the demands for the declara tion of Ahmadis as a non-Muslim minority;

(2) That the City Muslim League requests the Provincial Muslim League and the Al

l-Pakistan Muslim League to take the issue of the declaration of Ahmadis as a no n-Muslim minority in their own hands in order to save the nation from further di sintegration ; and

(3) That in view of the importance, unanimity and the delicate nature of the dem ands and public feeling in the country, the Central and the Provincial Leagues s hould take some practical steps in the matter.

The City Muslim League, Kamoke, also passed a resolution to the effect that sinc e the ulama, of the Punjab had unanimously declared the Ahmadis to be outside th e pale of Islam, the Ahmadis had become ineligible for being members of the Musl im League, that members of the Muslim League who were Ahmadis should be rusticat ed from the League and that no Ahmadi should in future be eligible for membershi p of the League.

In a public statement published in the Afaq of 18th July Mr. Daultana. The Preside nt of the Punjab Muslim League appealed to the members of the League to help the League in the solution of the religious and political problems which had arisen over the issue of khatm-i-nubuwwat. He advised them to remain calm and patient in order to enable the Working Committee and the Council of the Provincial Leagu e to deal with questions on which these two organisations alone could give a cor rect lead to the people in the forthcoming meeting of the Provincial League whic h was to be held on 26th and 27th July.

At a meeting of the Working Committee of the Punjab Provincial Muslim League hel d on 28th June, 1952, it was decided to hold the next session of the League at L ahore on 26th and 27th July, 1952. A provisional agenda was fixed for the purpos e on 1st July 1952, but it did not include the issue of khatm-i-nubuwwat. The ag enda was issued to all Councillors who were requested to submit by 15th July suc h resolutions as they wished to be moved. Accordingly the following resolutions were received by the Joint Secretary of the League:

1. Resolution, dated 14th July, 1952, moved by Qazi Murid Ahmad, M.L.A., Council lor, Punjab Muslim League, and seconded by Sahibzada Mahmud Shah of Gujrat, Coun cillor, Punjab Muslim League: That this meeting of the Punjab Muslim League Coun cil demands of the Government of Pakistan that Mirzais be declared a separate no n-Muslim minority and directs the Muslim League Assembly Party that at an early date it should have a resolution passed in the Punjab Legislative Assembly calli ng upon the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan to declare the Mirzais a separate n on-Muslim minority.

2. Resolution, dated 14th July, 1952, moved by Sahibzada Sayyad Mahmud Shah of G ujrat, Councillor, Punjab Muslim. League, and seconded by Qazi Murid Ahmad, Coun cillor, Punjab Muslim League: That this meeting of the Punjab Provincial Muslim League suspects Chaudhri Zafrullah Khans loyalty to the State and believes that C haudhri Zafrullah Khan has exploited the office of Foreign Minister to propagate the doctrine of Mirzaeeat and in filling up public posts with Mirzais, that the failure to have the Kashmir issue solved is due not only to Chaudhri Zafrullah

Khans inability but also to his and his Jamaats traditional loyalty to Great Britai n and that the interests of Pakistan, Islamic countries and Kashmir demand that Chaudhri Zafrullah Khan be removed from his office as early as possible.

3. Resolution, dated 15th July, 1952, moved by Muhammad Islam-ud-Din, M.L.A., Ve hari, District Multan: That the Mirzais who do not believe in the finality of th e Holy Prophet of Islam and on the contrary consider that those who believe in s uch finality are Kafirs be declared to be a non-Muslim minority and that this de mand flows from religious, democratic and constitutional principles. That the Pu njab Provincial Muslim League should impress upon the Central Government the imp ortance of the doctrine of khatm-i-nubuwwat and require that Government to decla re persons having a different belief as a minority.

4. Resolution, dated 12th June, 1952, moved by Maulana Sayyad Ahmad Saeed Kazmi, member, Provincial Muslim League Council, Multan, and seconded by Khwaja Abdul Hakim Siddiqi, President, City Muslim League, Multan, and further supported by S ufi Muhammad Abdul Ghafoor Ludhianvi, Honorary Office Secretary, District Muslim League, Multan, Councillor, Provincial Muslim League: That since the Qadianis a re unanimously considered to be outside the pale of Islam, they should be declar ed to be a non-Muslim minority and that such declaration should not be delayed b y Government. That since Chaudhri Zafrullah Khan, who is a Qadiani, is not a rep resentative of the Musalmans, the Punjab Provincial Muslim League Council should demand from the Government of Pakistan that he should be removed from the offic e and some reliable Musalman appointed in his place.

5. Resolution, dated 14th July, 1952, moved by Muhammad Ibrahim Qureshi, General Secretary, City Muslim League, Jhang, Councillor, Punjab Muslim League: That th e Council should declare that on the strength of their own showings and writings the Ahmadis should be declared by the Council to be a separate non-Muslim minor ity but that they should be treated as generously as possible. That the Council should take adequate steps to preserve the doctrine of the finality of nubuwwat of the Holy Prophet of Islam and should not in future appoint any members of the Jama at-i-Ahmadiya to any key post. That the Muslim League should take the quest ion of preservation of the doctrine of khatm-i-nubuwwat in its own hands so that no zilli or buruzi should in future dare propound any doctrine to the contrary and thus endanger the integrity of the State.

The next meeting of the Working Committee was held on 25th July under the chairm anship of Mr. Daultana, President of the Punjab Provincial Muslim League. At thi s meeting it was announced by the Chairman that the resolutions which had been r eceived by 15th July 1952 had been examined by him and other office bearers and that they had come to the conclusion that only eight resolutions were to be move d in the Council. This was approved by the committee and in the list of approved resolutions there was at No. 3 a resolution called khatm-i-nubuwwat to be moved by Sayyad Mustafa Shah Khalid Gilani.

The second session of the Council began at 8 a.m. on 27th July, and in it the fo llowing resolution was passed by a majority of 284 to 8:

The Council of the Punjab Muslim League is fully conscious of the truth that khat m-i-nubuwwat is one of those fundamental articles of the Islamic faith which hav e knit together Muslims of the world into a spiritual brotherhood and provided a strong basis for the unity and solidarity of the Muslim nation in Pakistan. Thi s truth carries with it the obvious and natural implication that non-subscribers to the doctrine of khatm-i-nubuwwat have a fundamental difference with what Isl am stands for in the domain of religious belief.

On the basis of this position, about which there is or can be no dispute, a prop osal, which pertains to the domain of political action and constitutional legisl ation, has been put forward, namely, that the Ahmadis who have a fundamental dif ference of attitude on a question of faith, should be classed as a non-Muslim mi nority in the Constitution of Pakistan. In the opinion of the Council the propos al reflects to a certain extent the reaction of Muslims to the strong separatist tendencies which the Ahmadis have themselves at times shown not only in religio us matters, but also in the sphere of civic and social life.

The proposal, however, involves grave and important issues of a constitutional a nd legal nature which will affect the privileges and obligations of citizens of Pakistan and will determine the nature of the constitutional set-up which is to be proposed for Pakistan. Such matters naturally require deep and careful consid eration in a spirit of calm unprejudiced deliberation unaffected by emotionalism or agitation. The Council of the Punjab Muslim League is, therefore, of the opi nion that the constitutional issue involved may, with the fullest confidence, be left to the mature judgment of the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League & t he Members of the Pakistan Constituent Assembly. In the meantime every member of the Muslim League organisation must endeavour to create an atmosphere of calmne ss and serenity in which alone deliberate decisions affecting fundamental consti tutional policy can be taken.

At the same tame this Council affirms its unwavering adherence to the principle that it is not only a democratic but also a religious duty of Muslims of Pakista n to protect as their own the life, property, honour and all civic rights of eve ry citizen of this State, irrespective of his or her caste or creed. This Counci l expects the Muslim League Ministry in the Punjab to uphold the principle in al l circumstances.

At a subsequent meeting of the Working Committee held on 22nd August, 1932, it w as resolved that no member or office bearer of the Muslim League should preside over the meetings of Majlis-i-Amal of All Muslim Parties Convention. Mr. Daultan a now busied himself in explaining the stand taken by the Provincial Muslim Leag ue in its resolution of 27th July. Speaking in Hazuri Bagh on 30th August, 1952, he said: To-day Pakistan is the only country in the world which seeks to claim I slamic Government. The whole world is watching us in this experiment and if we f ailed in fulfilling this responsibility, the world would have an opportunity to say that there is no room for an Islamic form of Government in the world. In the matter of khatm-i-nubuwwat, I have the same belief which a Musalman should have . According to me all those who do not believe the Holy Prophet to be the last o f the prophets are outside the pale of Islam. I go further and say that to raise any argument on the doctrine of khatm-inubuwwat itself amounts to kufr because an argument is possible only where the matter admits of some doubt. The belief i

n khatm-i-nubuwwat is a part of our faith and it is above all argument and logic . The Mirzais are themselves responsible for the hatred that has been created ag ainst them because of their separatist tendencies. They are separate from us in every department of life and have confined their personal, political and social activities to their own class. The Qadiani officers have been guilty of partiali ty towards men of their own community as several allotments were made by them me rely on the ground of the allottee being a Mirzai. This was an abuse of their of ficial position.

The remedy for this state of affairs does not lie in emotional speeches and publ ic meetings. So far as the Punjab is concerned, I shall take strong action again st anyone who is found guilty of partiality on sectarian grounds and will have e very such complaint fully investigated. I appeal to you in the name of the teach ings of Islam and in the good name of the nation to protect the life, property a nd honour of every person who calls himself a Pakistan citizen. So long as I am the Chief Minister I shall not tolerate in my Province the shedding of innocent blood and shall spare no pains in protecting the honour of every citizen, and I shall discharge this religious, moral and official duty at every cost. The quest ion of declaring the Mirzais as a minority is a constitutional question. Our Con stitution has not so far been framed and the Constituent Assembly has not taken any decision in regard to the distinction to be observed between the majority co mmunity and the minorities. The question should, therefore, be left to the Const ituent Assembly. But assuming for the sake of argument that the Mirzais are decl ared a minority, what would be the position if they cease to call themselves as Mirzais. The object in declaring a group or a community as a minority is that no t only the rights of that group or minority should be determined but that such r ights should be protected and they should be given concessions in public service s and representation in Legislative Assemblies. If the Mirzais are declared a mi nority we shall be bound to give them all those concessions and rights which we do not wish to give them now. This is a very complicated question which requires deep and se rious consideration. It is not a question which can be settled by holding public meetings, raising riots or throwing stones or by any other rash step. I ask all those who are holding public meetings in connection with the khatm-i-nubuwwat m ovement, where is the need for such meetings if everyone of us believes in khatm -i-nubuwwat? These unnecessary meetings sometimes create a doubt in my mind abou t the bona fides of those who are organising them. In the course of his speech at Rawalpindi reported in the Civil & Military Gazette of 13th September, 1952, he s aid: I want lo make the country a true Islamic republic, in which every-one, irre spective of his political opinions should have equal rights and everything shoul d be settled by exemplary justice; where people are well off economically and. m orally, where people are sincere, sober and earnest in achieving the common good of the country. URL: http://newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamBooksAndDocuments_1.aspx?ArticleID=2596