LARKANA: Speakers at the 95th birth anniversary of Sobho Gianchandani observed here on Sunday said that he was larger than life and an icon of principled-politics who was not only a politician but also a thinker and philosopher with deep imprints on literature.

The Gianchandani family including his elder son Nirmal, daughter Raikha and daughter-in-law Nirmala, intellectuals and members of the Pirbhat Women Development Society participated in the birthday and cake-cutting ceremony at Ginachandani’s residence.

Nirmal said that he felt alone after the death of his father who had been a towering personality and been like a thick shadow of a tree over the family who always taught them lessons in humanism.

His absence had created a vacuum in their lives and it looked quite strange to cut his birthday cake when he was no more with them, he said.

Ms Nirmala said that her father-in-law was a highly sensitive man and loved her so much that he never admonished her throughout his life.

Ms Raikha said that she felt alone in the house after the departure of her father-in-law who kept them all together through all ups and downs of life and kept teaching them to love humankind.

Wahab Pandrani and Ms Rubina Chandio of Pirbhat Women Development Society said the high stature personality like that of Gianchandani needed extensive work and demanded that his unpublished works should be published.

He termed Gianchandani’s life a lighthouse for the wayfarers and said his unparalleled contribution to politics, literature and social services should always be remembered by printing and reprinting his books and works.

Mohammad Ali Pathan, who transcribed Gianchandani’s works; Ali Zahid, a columnist, Dr Khadim Mangi, Uris Selro, Murad Pandrani, Ms Shanul Khoso, Rauf Korai, Ms Salma Bhatti and others said that Gianchandani was a politician of principles, who travelled against the wind.

He was capable of boldly saying ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and never compromised over his principles, they said.

The Anjuman Taraqqi Pasand Musannifin also observed Gianchandani’s birth anniversary at a local hotel where advocate Ms Kalpana Devi, daughter-in-law of Gianchandani, who is also chairperson of Hindu Panchayat, said that Gianchandani fought for the establishment of a secular society in Sindh throughout his life and he had remained a lynchpin of politics of nationalism.

She said that no one could bend him. He always held fast to his principles in all circumstances and served humanity regardless of caste, creed and skin colour of a person, she said.

Prof Jam Jamali, Manzoor Kalhoro, Qasim Daud Abbasi, Ai Raza Gaad and Jeal Oad, author of Larkana at a glance, and others said that he (Gianchandani) stood unshaken in all difficult times. He stood high in his contemporaries and was an icon of ‘principled-politics’, they said.

They said that Gianchandani was not only a politician but also a thinker and a philosopher who had left deep imprints on literature for which he was honoured with top award of literature, the “Kamal-i-fun” award.

They called for publishing all the unpublished works of Gianchandani.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2015

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