KHYBER: With different literary organisations busy in making preparations for the 30th death anniversary of Sufi poet and renowned writer Ameer Hamza Khan Shinwari, popularly known as Hamza Baba and father of Pashto ghazal on February 18, security forces deployed at his mausoleum in Landi Kotal have largely restricted the entry of his disciples and followers to the premises.

During a visit to the mausoleum, this scribe found the main door closed from inside with the security personnel obstructing entry to the premises prior to taking permission from one of their senior officials present inside the mausoleum.

The head of officials inside the mausoleum, upon inquiry, told this scribe that they were deployed there about more than a month ago to provide security to the transit camp established for Afghan nationals returning to their homeland.

He was, however, at loss to mention an exact date for vacating the premises while arguing that they were there on the orders of their senior officials.

A machinegun mounted armoured personnel carrier vehicle (APC) was also parked inside the mausoleum while the library was converted into a bedroom-cum-kitchen by the new occupants with dirty utensils littering the place of serious reading.

Literary circles demand relocation of forces as death anniversary of Hamza Baba nears

The security personnel present there insisted that they were not stopping anybody from entering the mausoleum and paying homage to the renowned Pashto poet but they did ask about the identity of visitors and purpose of their visit.

Family sources of Hamza Baba and members of some local literary organisations, however, said that a considerable number of followers and fans of the great Pashto poet from different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan returned without offering homage at the mausoleum as they found the main door of the premises closed during their recent visits.

Family members regretted that local officials had not taken them into confidence before deployment of the security personnel inside the mausoleum. They said that security personnel should be deployed at the transit camp, adjacent to the mausoleum, instead of occupying the sacred place, which was frequently visited by hundreds of people as a mark of respect to Hamza Baba.

In their social media messages, the members of some local literary organisations, took exception to the presence of security personnel inside Hamza Baba mausoleum and converting the library into a kitchen and bedroom.

They said that personnel deputed for security of the transit camp should be relocated to another safe place near the camp and leave the mausoleum open for visitors, whose number was reduced owing to presence of forces there.

Literary circles insisted that their preparations for observing the forthcoming death anniversary of Hamza Baba would also be affected if security forces continued to occupy the mausoleum.

Published in Dawn, January 15th, 2024