Bacha Khan: an icon of peace preaching
Khan’s personality left deep imprints on the history of the independence struggle and also upon democratic movements
The writer is a former civil servant and Chairman of Pakhtun Think Tank and can be reached at aashah7@yahoo.com
Bacha Khan’s death anniversary was observed by his admirers on January 20th while the government and national media did little to do any commemoration programmes for him. Great personalities like Bacha Khan can be best assessed in terms of their interaction with the times in which they lived and the imprint that they left on the course of history.
Political philosophy has underscored the importance of protecting basic human rights for ensuring rich and meaningful life for citizens of a country. In modern era Tolstoy deeply influenced the thoughts of Gandhi who adopted the weapon of nonviolence and passive resistance against the apartheid-based policy of racists in South Africa. Another towering personality that experienced similar phases of self-realisation and nonviolent resistance was Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, popularly known as Bacha Khan. Though born and brought up in a typical Pashtun family of rural background, Bacha Khan had the courage and tenacity not to slavishly follow the social code of Pakhtunwali. From a very early age, he denounced the norm of ‘badal’ ie ‘an eye for an eye’ code of honour. He relentlessly campaigned against this as the Pashtun society had been bedevilled and fractured with blood feud and tribal enmity. Bacha Khan also launched his reform movement against other social vices of the Pashtun society, including gender discrimination, disregard for education and religious extremism.
Politically, the Pashtuns received the worst wrath of the colonial rulers because of their geostrategic location as the British viewed them to be the weakest link in their defence against potential invaders through Afghanistan. Bacha Khan pondered over the plight of Pashtuns and concluded that emancipation of the mind and soul lay in purging of vices from society. In a rural society, the young man in the prime of his youth founded his first school in Utmanzai, soon to be followed by many more in other villages. Those activities alarmed the British who did not like any sociopolitical activity in this part of the Indian empire. Using all means, from bribes to intimidation and incarceration, the British could, however, not break his resolve. He formed Ajuman-e-Islahe Afghana to continue with this campaign of social reforms. His other crowning achievement was the publication of Pashto-language Journal ‘Pakhtun’. The zenith of his struggle came in the form of Khudai Khidmatgar movement, which helped in imparting political awareness to the people of Pashtun belt.
Like Gandhi, Bacha Khan had also blended his passion for freedom from the colonial imperialists with a sense of realism. He realised that the might of imperialism could not be defeated with an armed struggle and, therefore, popularised the idea of nonviolent struggle that relied on the might of morality and ethics. Travelling from village to village, he tried his best to forge unity among the fragmented groups of the Pashtun community that lay divided along tribal and religious lines. Unfortunately, even after the departure of the British, true independence never dawned upon the people in Pakistan. Consequently, Bacha Khan had to continue his struggle of democracy, suffering immensely at the hands of new tormenters. He had also warned that the forced policy of centralisation would prove ruinous for the country. We not only lost half of Pakistan but his predictions about the Afghan conflict also came true as the so-called holy jihad in Afghanistan brought nothing but destruction to the country, in general, and Pashtuns, in particular. We are unfortunate as a nation as we are in the habit of not learning lessons from history. We have not made humane and loving personalities like Bacha Khan our national heroes and instead cultivate fake heroes. In the words of George Orwell, we are rewriting history, as those that control the past control the present.
Bacha Khan’s personality had left deep imprints not only on the history of independence struggle before 1947 but also upon democratic movements in Pakistan. Perhaps Asma Jahangir had best summarised the contribution of Bacha Khan in one of her last speeches as, “A Pakistan without Pakhtuns and a Pakistan without Bacha Khan would have been a narrow minded Pakistan.”
Published in The Express Tribune, January 31st, 2019.
Political philosophy has underscored the importance of protecting basic human rights for ensuring rich and meaningful life for citizens of a country. In modern era Tolstoy deeply influenced the thoughts of Gandhi who adopted the weapon of nonviolence and passive resistance against the apartheid-based policy of racists in South Africa. Another towering personality that experienced similar phases of self-realisation and nonviolent resistance was Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, popularly known as Bacha Khan. Though born and brought up in a typical Pashtun family of rural background, Bacha Khan had the courage and tenacity not to slavishly follow the social code of Pakhtunwali. From a very early age, he denounced the norm of ‘badal’ ie ‘an eye for an eye’ code of honour. He relentlessly campaigned against this as the Pashtun society had been bedevilled and fractured with blood feud and tribal enmity. Bacha Khan also launched his reform movement against other social vices of the Pashtun society, including gender discrimination, disregard for education and religious extremism.
Politically, the Pashtuns received the worst wrath of the colonial rulers because of their geostrategic location as the British viewed them to be the weakest link in their defence against potential invaders through Afghanistan. Bacha Khan pondered over the plight of Pashtuns and concluded that emancipation of the mind and soul lay in purging of vices from society. In a rural society, the young man in the prime of his youth founded his first school in Utmanzai, soon to be followed by many more in other villages. Those activities alarmed the British who did not like any sociopolitical activity in this part of the Indian empire. Using all means, from bribes to intimidation and incarceration, the British could, however, not break his resolve. He formed Ajuman-e-Islahe Afghana to continue with this campaign of social reforms. His other crowning achievement was the publication of Pashto-language Journal ‘Pakhtun’. The zenith of his struggle came in the form of Khudai Khidmatgar movement, which helped in imparting political awareness to the people of Pashtun belt.
Like Gandhi, Bacha Khan had also blended his passion for freedom from the colonial imperialists with a sense of realism. He realised that the might of imperialism could not be defeated with an armed struggle and, therefore, popularised the idea of nonviolent struggle that relied on the might of morality and ethics. Travelling from village to village, he tried his best to forge unity among the fragmented groups of the Pashtun community that lay divided along tribal and religious lines. Unfortunately, even after the departure of the British, true independence never dawned upon the people in Pakistan. Consequently, Bacha Khan had to continue his struggle of democracy, suffering immensely at the hands of new tormenters. He had also warned that the forced policy of centralisation would prove ruinous for the country. We not only lost half of Pakistan but his predictions about the Afghan conflict also came true as the so-called holy jihad in Afghanistan brought nothing but destruction to the country, in general, and Pashtuns, in particular. We are unfortunate as a nation as we are in the habit of not learning lessons from history. We have not made humane and loving personalities like Bacha Khan our national heroes and instead cultivate fake heroes. In the words of George Orwell, we are rewriting history, as those that control the past control the present.
Bacha Khan’s personality had left deep imprints not only on the history of independence struggle before 1947 but also upon democratic movements in Pakistan. Perhaps Asma Jahangir had best summarised the contribution of Bacha Khan in one of her last speeches as, “A Pakistan without Pakhtuns and a Pakistan without Bacha Khan would have been a narrow minded Pakistan.”
Published in The Express Tribune, January 31st, 2019.