THEOSOPHICAL Hall in Karachi has a rich historical background. It has names of eminent individuals such as educationist Dr Annie Besant and Jamshed Nusserwanjee Mehta (the first elected mayor of the city) associated with its foundation. Although its building was redone after independence, it remained a major venue for a variety of events until a few decades back.

On April 5, 1970, a large number of music lovers thronged Theosophical Hall and enjoyed the ‘throbbing rhythm’ of Sindhi folk music. Some of the prominent artists at the time presented both songs and instrumentals at a concert organised by the Sindhi Adabi Sangat Karachi. Pir Hissamuddin Rashdi was the chief guest on the occasion, and noted political figures G. M. Syed and Abdul Majeed Sindhi were also present at the venue. Some of the artists who performed were: Rubina, Misri Khan Baloch, Nur Bano, Surraya and Rafiqa.

One of the distinguished men mentioned above was again in the news on April 10, but this time for a political reason. G. M. Sayed, president of the Sindh United Front, said in a statement that the leadership of Sindh is quite clear on the choice of Karachi as the permanent capital of Sindh.

The town itself was changing rapidly both in terms of infrastructure and demographics. On April 9, a report published in this newspaper revealed that the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) had so far launched housing projects worth Rs317 million and had urbanised at least 22,942 acres of land in and around the city. This was apart from the colossal amount spent by the cooperative housing societies and other agencies to solve the residential problem of the metropolis. According to figures, a total of about 26,100 acres of land had been urbanised in Karachi since independence.

The KDA itself faced a bit of a problem the day before when its workers’ union demanded workers’ representation on the governing body. As per a press release, it urged the authority that the minimum salaries of Class III and IV employees should be fixed at Rs200 and Rs140 per month, respectively.

The KDA union did not push for a no-work day, but on April 8, non-governmental colleges in Karachi did not function as the lecturers went on a 24-hour strike in response to the call made by the West Pakistan College Teachers Association. Their two main demands: security of service and grant of 20 per cent interim relief. President of the association Anita Ghulam Ali also addressed a protest meeting at the Sir Syed Girls College.

Perhaps the most significant act of remonstrating was being carried out by the journalist community that week. On April 9, working journalists in Karachi staged peaceful demonstrations in different parts of the city for a second consecutive day. Organised by the Karachi Union of Journalists, the demonstrations were held to press for the acceptance of the four-point charter of demands presented earlier by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists. They included immediate payment of interim relief to the newsmen, upgrading of two news agencies and interim relief for non-journalist employees in the same scale as journalists.

All was not gloom and doom, by the way. If rules and regulations were being challenged in certain professions, in other areas law enforcers were rewarding those who were helping them do their job. On April 7, Divisional Commissioner Masood Nabi Noor awarded a rickshaw driver with a sanad and a pistol for gallantry. The driver, Atta Elahi, had shown bravery in arresting an armed miscreant.

Published in Dawn, April 6th, 2020