The fact is that Iqbal’s philosophy of ‘khudi’ does not suit the rulers of Pakistan.
LOUISVILLE, KY, US: This is with reference to Dr Riffat Hassan’s article of November 11 titled “Recovery of Iqbal’s lost legacy”. The fact is that Iqbal’s philosophy of ‘khudi’ does not suit the rulers of Pakistan. His emphasis was on moral and ethical values, action instead of rituals, equal rights and justice. For this reason, the rulers of Pakistan systematically removed the books on Iqbal from the syllabus. Iqbal is not taught in Pakistan anymore.
If an honest government is placed at the helm of affairs, the first thing they should is to start teaching Iqbal at all levels — starting from Class I. Iqbal’s poems for children will be extremely helpful in character building. What can be more ironic than the fact that Government College University Lahore, where Iqbal was a student and later a teacher, has the Iqbal Chair but it does not teach Iqbal anymore.
Mirza Aslam Beg
Published in The Express Tribune, November 12th, 2011.
