KARACHI: Aziz Qureshi, an Indian writer and politician, was the guest of honour of the Karachi Press Club’s literary committee on Saturday.
A lively conversationalist, his brief talk on the prevailing socio-political conditions in India became a mini-press conference when he projected the secularist and the liberal points of view in the Indian politics with an optimistic note that the present atmosphere was not irretrievable and things would certainly improve with the passage of time.
A former parliamentarian, Mr Qureshi had been in the House for quite a long time during which he played an important role in bringing sanity to the tense communal politics of India.
The guest was introduced by Mr Anwer Abbas, president of the Pakistan-India Peoples’ Forum, Karachi chapter. Zeb Azkar Hussain of the committee welcomed him, while KPC secretary Najeeb Ahmad presented vote of thanks.
Mr Qureshi is the President of Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu, Madhya Pardesh (Bhopal). As a member of the University Grants Commission of India, he played a pivotal role in the establishment of the Maulana Abul Kalam University in the south, which is a residential and open university.
He also worked as a member of the committee formed to look into the conditions of minorities and recommended steps to improve them.
Among the eight minorities, Muslims are seen at the lowest rung due to their lack of education, Mr Qureshi lamented their plight but added that things were improving and Muslims had started to realize the cause of their poverty and low social status.
As Muslims’ madaris have constantly been under attacks by communal elements, who also demand the closure of these institutions for their “fundamentalist” character, Mr Qureshi faced the challenge and referred to historical records that the religious seminaries had been set up during the British rule and were not of a new origin.
He advised the management of the madaris to include in their syllabus modern studies and technical teachings for the benefit of students, and also accept the government grants to meet additional expenses with a firm assurance that there shall be no official interference in the affairs of the institutions. Those schools are now serving great services, he added.
Mr Qureshi expressed the optimism and said that a vast majority of people in India believed in secular values and an average youth hated the communalists.
A large number of liberal and secular parties and NGOs are at work to fight back the Hindu extremists and communalists and that the sudden rise of communal parties is just a passing phase, Mr Qureshi observed.
