KARACHI: Speakers at a programme held to pay homage to the ‘revolutionary’ of his time Rasool Bux Palijo said the intellectual and politician, who died a few months ago, mainly focused on the uplift of women and other marginalised segments of society and he began his struggle at home.

“He was a witness to grave injustices that were being done to women in our village, but he decided not to see them as a silent spectator; instead, he stood against those prejudices and librated, first women of his own family and then the rest of Sindh,” said Hoor Palijo, a younger sister of the veteran politician who was famous for his communist inclination, nationalistic ideas and his passion for world literature and philosophy.

The tribute was organised by the Arts Council of Pakistan Karachi at its new auditorium on Wednesday.

‘My brother changed everything, he fought for us to get education’

She said decades ago when Palijo was a student of law, women were not allowed to be a part of decision making and even they could not sing songs loudly.

“My mother had got a sweet voice, so had our aunts, who would sing in a low voice as women were not allowed to sing loud. My brother changed everything. He fought for us to get education and listened to our mother and aunts singing as loud as they could.”

Activist and classical dancer Sheema Kirmani spoke on her association with the late Mr Palijo, saying that he made the women of Sindh confident, passionate and politically conscious.

Columnist Wusatullah Khan said Mr Palijo was a voracious reader. He, however, did not keep his knowledge to himself and loved to share his thoughts and ideas with his companions.

“Anyone who met him and listened to him had never left without carrying piles of knowledge.”

Writer Madad Ali Sindhi said Mr Palijo was an out-and-out activist, who deemed it compulsory for his cadres and anyone who came to him for guidance to be good readers. He was himself a great writer who authored landmark books, and thought reading was necessary for all activists.

Political consciousness in peasants

“He taught people how to read books and that augmented our people’s interest tremendously in reading. He created political consciousness in peasants.”

Writer Jami Chandio said those who bracketed Palijo as a Maoist had tried to confine him and lessen his stature.

“Palijo sahib was called a Maoist because he raised the question of revolutionary character of peasants. But, Lenin accepted it a century earlier though Trotsky refused it completely. He was a student of communism. In fact, he was a student of all revolutions of the world,” said Mr Chandio.

Labour leader Karamat Ali said Palijo’s Sindhiani Tehreek was a unique women’s organisation in South Asia, where emancipation of women was the key mantra.

He said Mr Palijo was not against any other ethnic entity in Pakistan or elsewhere, rather, he was against imperialism.

Dr Ayoub Shaikh said Mr Palijo had a multifaceted personality; he was not just a great politician, but was a writer and intellectual with no lesser calibre than his contemporaries.

He said Palijo had worked extensively exploring Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai and he was the pioneer of presenting revolutionary and popular aspects of Shah’s verses.

Qadir Ranto, a close associate of the late Mr Palijo, said his leader sculpted people instead of stones, which was much harder a task than what sculptors did.

“For him,” said Mr Ranto, “Sindh was a gallery and he would relentlessly sculpt us, the people, to become worthy of living and serving humanity”.

He said he was among hundreds of thousands of poor people with rural backgrounds and was so confident and politically aware that despite having a humble academic qualification, he confidently spoke before an erudite audience.

Gul Hasan Kalmati and Vijay Ahuja also spoke.

Later, Sheema Kirmani paid tribute to Mr Palijo in a dance rendition.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2018