PESHAWAR: Young poets came up with beautiful spring couplets to remember Ghani Khan on his 24th death anniversary at a Pashto mushaira held here on Friday evening.

The event was organised under the auspices of the Pakhtun Students Federation at the University of Peshawar’s Agha Khan Auditorium Hall.

Around 20 young university poets read out their poems to mark the death anniversary of the great painter, sculptor and poet, Ghani Khan, in which a large number of students and faculty members of UoP, Agriculture University, Islamia College University and University of Engineering and Technology, Peshawar, participated. The mushaira kept the audience glued to their seats for three hours.

Young university poets read out their poems featuring attributes of the spring season and their love for Ghani Khan. Words filled with fragrance of the heralding spring season should take it to the soul of Ghani Khan, the young bards recited. Ghani Khan, they versified, was an artiste who created images of words and crafted poetic images.

Senior nationalist poet Shams Buneri while chairing the event said that Ghani Khan had scaled the heights of success when he was quite young and even had made to the parliament where he delivered speeches on the assembly floor and stunned many a parliamentarians with his vision and political wisdom.

Mr Buneri said that young poets and writers could educate masses through their talent and raise awareness of their social, civil and political rights. He said that Ghani Khan used his talent to enlighten his people and gave them the sense to stand up for spreading peace and non-violence philosophy of Bacha Khan.

“Young poets impressed me with their creative style of expression. University campuses require such events to help young minds open up and bring out their hidden talent,” he added.

The Pashto mushaira was opened with famous poem of Ghani Khan ‘Ay Zama Watana’ (O! my land), which was followed by spring notes recited by young university literati.

Jamshid Wazir, provincial chairman of PSF organising committee, said that the Pashto mushaira was arranged to remember Ghani Khan and also to pay tribute to his contributions to art, peace, literature and humanism. He said Ghani Khan was a great lover of flowers.

Ansarullah a young poet of UoP’s Political Science Department told this scribe that Ghani Khan’s poetry would always inspire young poets and writers.

Noted guest poets, including Ahmad Ali Aajiz, Hayat Roghani and Baz Khan Alamyar read out poems, while university bards Talal Biadar, Tariq Pakhtunyar, Jalal Khalil, Shaheen Afghan and Musawir Dawar recited enchanting spring numbers.

Published in Dawn, March 7th, 2020