SANGHAR: Speaking at the 75th death anniversary of Pir Sibghatullah Shah Rashdi, scholars and elected representatives of the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) condemned the Sindh government for not declaring the day a public holiday despite a unanimous resolution passed in the provincial assembly.

They were addressing a gathering of members of the Hur Jamaat and notables of Sanghar city at the Pir Sibghatullah Shah Shaheed Hall of the local press club on Tuesday.

The speakers paid glowing tributes to Pir Sibghatullah, known as Soreh Badshah, who was sent to gallows on March 20, 1943, in the aftermath of a military court verdict under the colonial rule of the British Empire. His body was not handed over to his heirs or his followers and his burial place is still not known.

Under the banner of ‘Hur Historical Society’, a local organisation working on the history of the Hurs, a public gathering on the death anniversary of Soreh Badshah has become a yearly feature.

Those who addressed the gathering included historian and academician Prof Umer Chand, who has written three books on the Hurs’ history, MNA Pir Bux Junejo, MPA Saeed Khan Nizamani and Hur Jamaat Khalifa Ali Ghulam Nizamani. They said the Hur uprising was a genuine freedom movement against the foreign occupation, which turned into a guerrilla war after the arrest of Soreh Badshah.

The speakers said that neither lucrative offers nor repressive measures of the colonial power could attract or bend him. Following the resistance of Soreh Badshah and his followers, the British Empire initiated a harsh action against them, they added.

Martial law was imposed in the areas populated by members of the Hur Jamaat and concentration camps were set up to confine the followers of Soreh Badshah, they said. The freedom struggle, they said, launched by Pir Sibghatullah Shah Shaheed was aimed at driving away the English rulers from the subcontinent. They said Soreh Badshah launched the freedom movement against the colonial powers at the age of 21. The colonial rulers made ruthless efforts to crush the Hur uprising and scores of followers of Pir Pagaro were hanged, they said.

The PML(F) legislators criticised the provincial government for not declaring the day as public holiday despite the unanimous resolution passed by the provincial assembly on March 8.

An event marking the death anniversary was also held in Khipro by the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (Arisar).

Speaking on the occasion, its leaders said slavery in Sindh had still not been eliminated. They said they regarded Soreh Badshah as their leader and vowed to strive to fulfil his dreams through a peaceful struggle.

Published in Dawn, March 21st, 2018