ON Oct 10, 1976, King Khalid bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia came to Pakistan on a week-long visit. On the evening of Oct 14, he landed in Kari on the last leg of his official trip. A magnificent welcome was accorded to King Khalid bin Abdul Aziz on his arrival in the city from Lahore. The monarch stepped out of his aircraft and proceeded to Governor House in a motorcade through a nicely decorated and beautifully illuminated 10-mile route thronged on either side by thousands of jubilant men, women and children. Apart from him, the Boeing carried the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the Punjab governor, Mohammad Abbas Abbasi, the Punjab chief minister, Nawab Sadiq Hussain Qureshi, and members of the royal entourage. Sindh Governor Dilawar Khan greeted the king at the airport as army and navy bands played music. By the time ceremonies at the airport were over and the motorcade left for Governor House, the sun had almost set; and by the time the motorcade reached the heart of the city, every little corner of buildings in the area brightened up to produce one of the most impressive welcomes in the history of the city. The section from Napier Barracks to Governor House looked particularly good and attracted visitors until late at night.

The next day, on Oct 15, King Khalid bin Abdul Aziz had an hour-long meeting with Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. He was accompanied by the Saudi Minister for Defence, Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz. The meeting was also attended by the chief minister of Sindh, Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, the minister of state for defence and foreign affairs, Aziz Ahmed and the foreign secretary, Agha Shahi.

Mr Jatoi was in the news for another reason that week. On Oct 12, a reception was given to the chief minister of Sindh at Bagh-i-Jinnah by workers of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). Speaking on the occasion, he said everyone living in the province of Sindh was a Pakistani and a Sindhi. They should contribute as equal partners to the glory of Pakistan and Sindh. Mr Jatoi claimed in spite of the heavy backlog of problems, the untiring efforts of the people’s government had brought about a definite all-round improvement in the province. “It would take me several hours to recount only a few of these achievements during the past four years.” The chief minister pointed out that the government had to work within certain financial constraints and it wanted to spend every single penny judiciously. He said, the day was not far away when every home in Karachi would have gas, electricity, water, sewerage connections and other civic amenities. He said he was opposed to the quota system in services. Mr Jatoi recalled that although provincial quota in services existed for a very long time, it was during the governorship of Lt-Gen (retd) Rakhman Gul that within Sindh a quota was laid down for rural and urban areas. To do away with it, the chief minister added, he would need time as well as the help and support of the entire province.

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2026