Author and noted columnist Dr Ayesha Siddiqa has claimed in a recent tweet that Professor Rasul Bux Raees of Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) had attacked former Pakistan Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto during the 1970 election campaign when the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) founder was on a visit to Dera Ghazi Khan.
Siddiqa wrote that Mr Bhutto was visiting Dera Ghazi Khan and was about to address a political gathering when Raees, who was an active member of Jamaat-e-Islami at the time according to Ayesha Siddiqa, jumped at him from a tree. She added that Bhutto survived the assault but the professor’s views haven’t changed much since then.
Ayesha Siddiqa didn’t mention the name of the professor in the initial tweet and the Twitterati were curious to know. Many tried to guess and most were right on the mark. Rasul Bux Raees has never tried to hide his admiration for Prime Minister Imran Khan and his disdain for the overall political class in the country.
The suspense was over when responding to a tweet from journalist Danish Zaidi, Ayesha Siddiqa confirmed that the professor she had hinted at was Rasul Bux Raees (RBR).
Many demanded LUMS Assistant Professor Umair Javed was among those demanding proof of the ‘outlandish claim’. But Ayesha Siddiqa did not seem to be in a mood to explain herself. “I am sure despite your respectable look you weren't around during the early 70s nor do you know South Punjab”, she retorted.
https://twitter.com/iamthedrifter/status/1248568500945408000
Nida Kirmani, another LUMS faculty member, tweeted: If only LUMS professors were even half as interesting as some people imagined us to be…
"That is an extraordinary claim. Is there any evidence, perhaps a news report or something, that could confirm it", asked Hassan Javid, another LUMS faculty member.
Talking to Naya Daur, Ayesha Siddiqa said that the event had taken place in DG Khan during the 1970 election campaign. “The eyewitnesses are still alive and they are willing to come forward if Rasul Bux Raees chooses to deny it”. She added that Raees was an active member of Islami Jamiat-e-Tulaba (IJT) at the time and his friends used to call him Rasul Bux ‘Bijli’ for his zeal for the party. He was a third-year student at the time.
Siddiqa said that no FIR was filed because when he failed to take Bhutto down, PPP workers caught him. He was unarmed, the PPP workers beat him up and then let him go, she added.
Responding to various LUMS faculty members and other Twitter users questioning the authenticity of the claim, she said that there was nothing unbelievable about Rasul Bux Raees being a worker of Jamiat. “Is it unimaginable for a Jamiat worker to attack a political opponent? Jamaat-e-Islami was a popular political party in South Punjab and nothing was shocking about a DG Khan College student being an active member of JI in 1970”, she said.
When asked about the response by LUMS professors, Ayesha Siddiqa said, "People are saying in his defence that 'he is a good person'. Nobody is saying that he isn't a good person. It's just that this was his politics. Even today, his views tend to be anti-politics. These LUMS faculty members trying to defend Raees need to expand their research and understanding of politics beyond Lahore and its suburbs".
A Twitter user Mumtaz Yousafzai said that PPP wasn't always on the receiving end. "When the facts change people change their minds but there was a Jamaat e Islami Member of National Assembly Dr Nazir Ahmed from South Punjab who was murdered when ZA Bhutto was in Power and Governor Khar was nominated in the FIR. Time is the best healer better to avoid disputes", he tweeted in response to Ayesha Siddiqa's tweet.
Naya Daur repeatedly tried to contact Rasul Bux Raees for a comment but the professor did not respond. Our platform is still open to him and if he ever wishes to respond to Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa’s claims, we’ll update this story accordingly.
Siddiqa wrote that Mr Bhutto was visiting Dera Ghazi Khan and was about to address a political gathering when Raees, who was an active member of Jamaat-e-Islami at the time according to Ayesha Siddiqa, jumped at him from a tree. She added that Bhutto survived the assault but the professor’s views haven’t changed much since then.
Ayesha Siddiqa didn’t mention the name of the professor in the initial tweet and the Twitterati were curious to know. Many tried to guess and most were right on the mark. Rasul Bux Raees has never tried to hide his admiration for Prime Minister Imran Khan and his disdain for the overall political class in the country.
The suspense was over when responding to a tweet from journalist Danish Zaidi, Ayesha Siddiqa confirmed that the professor she had hinted at was Rasul Bux Raees (RBR).
Many demanded LUMS Assistant Professor Umair Javed was among those demanding proof of the ‘outlandish claim’. But Ayesha Siddiqa did not seem to be in a mood to explain herself. “I am sure despite your respectable look you weren't around during the early 70s nor do you know South Punjab”, she retorted.
https://twitter.com/iamthedrifter/status/1248568500945408000
Nida Kirmani, another LUMS faculty member, tweeted: If only LUMS professors were even half as interesting as some people imagined us to be…
"That is an extraordinary claim. Is there any evidence, perhaps a news report or something, that could confirm it", asked Hassan Javid, another LUMS faculty member.
Talking to Naya Daur, Ayesha Siddiqa said that the event had taken place in DG Khan during the 1970 election campaign. “The eyewitnesses are still alive and they are willing to come forward if Rasul Bux Raees chooses to deny it”. She added that Raees was an active member of Islami Jamiat-e-Tulaba (IJT) at the time and his friends used to call him Rasul Bux ‘Bijli’ for his zeal for the party. He was a third-year student at the time.
Siddiqa said that no FIR was filed because when he failed to take Bhutto down, PPP workers caught him. He was unarmed, the PPP workers beat him up and then let him go, she added.
Responding to various LUMS faculty members and other Twitter users questioning the authenticity of the claim, she said that there was nothing unbelievable about Rasul Bux Raees being a worker of Jamiat. “Is it unimaginable for a Jamiat worker to attack a political opponent? Jamaat-e-Islami was a popular political party in South Punjab and nothing was shocking about a DG Khan College student being an active member of JI in 1970”, she said.
When asked about the response by LUMS professors, Ayesha Siddiqa said, "People are saying in his defence that 'he is a good person'. Nobody is saying that he isn't a good person. It's just that this was his politics. Even today, his views tend to be anti-politics. These LUMS faculty members trying to defend Raees need to expand their research and understanding of politics beyond Lahore and its suburbs".
A Twitter user Mumtaz Yousafzai said that PPP wasn't always on the receiving end. "When the facts change people change their minds but there was a Jamaat e Islami Member of National Assembly Dr Nazir Ahmed from South Punjab who was murdered when ZA Bhutto was in Power and Governor Khar was nominated in the FIR. Time is the best healer better to avoid disputes", he tweeted in response to Ayesha Siddiqa's tweet.
Naya Daur repeatedly tried to contact Rasul Bux Raees for a comment but the professor did not respond. Our platform is still open to him and if he ever wishes to respond to Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa’s claims, we’ll update this story accordingly.