Helping hand needed: Pashto singer seeks government protection
Gulzar Alam says his brothers have usurped his property and are threatening him
Gulzar Alam and his family have been left without home and hearth. PHOTO: MUHAMMAD IQBAL/EXPRESS
PESHAWAR:
Senior Pashto signer Gulzar Alam has urged the government to protect him against relatives who have allegedly usurped his property and are repeatedly threatening him.
Speaking at a press conference at Peshawar Press Club on Monday, the singer – who was accompanied by his wife, Rukhsana Muqadas, and their son – accused his brothers Riaz, Sardar Ali, Sher Ali and Suleman of usurping his property, including their house.
“I have been forced to live in a rented house,” Alam told journalists at the PPC. “They have also threatened me on a number of occasions and I need protection against them.”
According to Muqadas, the family has been left without home and hearth.
“We have nothing left, they have taken everything from us,” she said. “We don’t want anything but our legal rights.”
Moreover, he also asked the elders to resolve the dispute through a jirga and provide them their rights.
Muqadas insisted that Alam has been unable to attend rehearsals and performances as his relatives have repeatedly given him death threats.
“We are facing severe financial problems,” she said. “My husband will not be able to earn if he does not perform.”
Alam has served the Pashto music industry for 37 years and has won several awards for his contributions.
Over the years, he has actively promoted the importance of Pashto music and protecting musicians, and has paid a heavy price for his views.
When the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal government seized the reins in the erstwhile North West Frontier Province in 2002, Alam aggressively advocated the rights of singers in the province.
He was forced to leave the city along with other singers and musicians who lived in Debgari. Alam settled in other parts of the country, including Quetta and Karachi, but never gave up on his profession.
He returned to Peshawar when the Awami National Party came into power.
After returning, he established a music academy near Khyber Super Market.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 13th, 2015.
Senior Pashto signer Gulzar Alam has urged the government to protect him against relatives who have allegedly usurped his property and are repeatedly threatening him.
Speaking at a press conference at Peshawar Press Club on Monday, the singer – who was accompanied by his wife, Rukhsana Muqadas, and their son – accused his brothers Riaz, Sardar Ali, Sher Ali and Suleman of usurping his property, including their house.
“I have been forced to live in a rented house,” Alam told journalists at the PPC. “They have also threatened me on a number of occasions and I need protection against them.”
According to Muqadas, the family has been left without home and hearth.
“We have nothing left, they have taken everything from us,” she said. “We don’t want anything but our legal rights.”
Moreover, he also asked the elders to resolve the dispute through a jirga and provide them their rights.
Muqadas insisted that Alam has been unable to attend rehearsals and performances as his relatives have repeatedly given him death threats.
“We are facing severe financial problems,” she said. “My husband will not be able to earn if he does not perform.”
Alam has served the Pashto music industry for 37 years and has won several awards for his contributions.
Over the years, he has actively promoted the importance of Pashto music and protecting musicians, and has paid a heavy price for his views.
When the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal government seized the reins in the erstwhile North West Frontier Province in 2002, Alam aggressively advocated the rights of singers in the province.
He was forced to leave the city along with other singers and musicians who lived in Debgari. Alam settled in other parts of the country, including Quetta and Karachi, but never gave up on his profession.
He returned to Peshawar when the Awami National Party came into power.
After returning, he established a music academy near Khyber Super Market.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 13th, 2015.