Mughal Emperor Babur’s birth anniversary marked

Uzbek envoy hopes the number of Pakistani tourists grows

The 537th birth anniversary of the first Mughal Emperor, Zaheeruddin Muhammad Babur, was celebrated in the federal capital.

The event was organised by the Mughal Cultural Forum and supported by the Uzbekistan Embassy in Islamabad.

Uzbek Ambassador Furkat Akhmed Sidikov said that Babur is considered a national hero of Uzbekistan and that every year on February 14, the Uzbek people and its government celebrate the Mughal emperor’s birth anniversary.

Babur had been born in the Fergana Valley located in modern-day Uzbekistan. The great-grandson of Timur, he ascended to the throne on Fergana when he was just 12 years old. But he soon had to relinquish it owing to rebellion. After tumultuous attempts to regain control of his native areas, he moved south to capture Kabul. After reclaiming and losing Samarkand, he turned his attention towards India and went on to form the Mughal empire after defeating Ibrahim Lodhi in the first battle of Panipat in 1526.

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Sidikov noted that in recent years, the number of Pakistani tourists and traders visiting Uzbekistan has been increasing steadily. Last year, he said, some 6,000 Pakistanis visited Uzbekistan.

“We hope to see this number grow in the coming days,” he said. The attraction for these tourists, Sidikov said, include a large number of historical and religious sites along with holy relics including the Mushaf and Katta Langar Holy Quran of Caliph Uthman - one of the oldest and unique manuscripts of the Holy Quran in the world.

“In Tashkent, you can visit the religious centre of Hazrat Imam, which hosts one of the most valuable relics of Islam - the Quran of Caliph Uthman,” he said, adding that the historic town of Samarkand hosts the famous Shahi Zinda necropolis, where the cousin of Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) - Qutham Ibn Abbas (AS) is buried and the mausoleum of Khoja Doniyar is located.

The envoy continued that the Bukhara region hosts the graves of the seven great Sufis of the Nakshbandiya order, one of the most influential Sufi movements in Uzbekistan.

Other speakers at the event noted the events in Babur’s life, his creativity, ideas and tactical nous which can be important for the younger generation.

Dr Afshan Malik said that Babur’s dominions were secure from Kandahar in the west to the borders of Bengal in the east and with a southern limit marked by the Rajput desert and the forts of Ranthambhor, Gwalior, and Chanderi.

Within that great area, however, there was no settled administration, only a congress of quarrelling chieftains and warlords until Babur arrived, she said. Even though Babur banded them together in the form of an empire, but it still had to be pacified and organized internally. It was thus a precarious heritage that Babur passed on to his son Humayun in 1530.