People who leave the most powerful of impacts on the society are almost always controversial in the eyes of historians. One such personality was Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah has been one of the most disputed characters in the history of the region.
The role of Jinnah in the freedom movement is profound. He was the man who showed the courage and confidence to lead the freedom movement for the Muslims of India and scores of books have been written on his life and struggle.
But two of Pakistan’s leading historians on Jinnah view his personality from two entirely opposite angles. This has led to confusion among the younger generations who want to develop a clear understanding of what Jinnah really stood for.
Dr Mubarak Ali’s considered view is that Jinnah was a secular person and according to Ali, Jinnah never wanted to use religion in politics.
But on the other hand, Dr Safdar Mehmood has rejected this claim by Mubarak Ali and believes that Jinnah was a religious man. To back his argument, he at one point wrote that once Hasrat Mohani went to meet Jinnah and as he entered his bedroom, he found Jinnah worshiping and crying for the success of his nation.
Dr Mubarak Ali has written that Jinnah would often say, “I and my type writer has made Pakistan” and he repeated this at various occasions. Mubarak Ali cites two books in which this statement has been quoted.
One book is written by Ahmad Saleem about the life of President Iskandar Mirza ‘Rise and Fall of a President’. Ahmad Saleem has written that once Iskandar Mirza said to Jinnah, “We must try to be considerate towards Muslim Leaguers because they have struggled for Pakistan” and Jinnah replied to him saying, “Who told you Muslim League brought Pakistan into being? I did it alone”.
The second book Dr Mubarak Ali cited for backing his argument is “The sound of fury” written by Matlub ul-Hassan in which he has written that Jinnah had said, “I won Pakistan with the help of my type writer”.
Dr Safdar Mehmood rejected these claims and wrote that the book by Ahmad Saleem was controversial since Jinnah would never be frank enough with bureaucrats to consult with them on matters of politics. According to him, there was no possibility of Iskandar Mirza advising Jinnah on political affairs. On these grounds, Safdar Mehmood concluded that it was a baseless claim made by Ahmad Saleem.
Rejecting the second source given by Dr Mubarak Ali, ‘The Sound of Fury’ written by Matlub ul-Hassan, Safdar Mehmood has written that he contacted Sharif al-Mujahid, the best friend of Matlub ul-Hassan, and Sharif said that Matlub ul-Hassan had never written any book by this name.
The two historians have cited secondhand sources and they weren’t eyewitness to the freedom movement. It is up to the future generations how they view the claims made by two of the most eminent historians of Pakistan.
The role of Jinnah in the freedom movement is profound. He was the man who showed the courage and confidence to lead the freedom movement for the Muslims of India and scores of books have been written on his life and struggle.
But two of Pakistan’s leading historians on Jinnah view his personality from two entirely opposite angles. This has led to confusion among the younger generations who want to develop a clear understanding of what Jinnah really stood for.
Dr Mubarak Ali’s considered view is that Jinnah was a secular person and according to Ali, Jinnah never wanted to use religion in politics.
But on the other hand, Dr Safdar Mehmood has rejected this claim by Mubarak Ali and believes that Jinnah was a religious man. To back his argument, he at one point wrote that once Hasrat Mohani went to meet Jinnah and as he entered his bedroom, he found Jinnah worshiping and crying for the success of his nation.
Dr Mubarak Ali has written that Jinnah would often say, “I and my type writer has made Pakistan” and he repeated this at various occasions. Mubarak Ali cites two books in which this statement has been quoted.
One book is written by Ahmad Saleem about the life of President Iskandar Mirza ‘Rise and Fall of a President’. Ahmad Saleem has written that once Iskandar Mirza said to Jinnah, “We must try to be considerate towards Muslim Leaguers because they have struggled for Pakistan” and Jinnah replied to him saying, “Who told you Muslim League brought Pakistan into being? I did it alone”.
The second book Dr Mubarak Ali cited for backing his argument is “The sound of fury” written by Matlub ul-Hassan in which he has written that Jinnah had said, “I won Pakistan with the help of my type writer”.
Dr Safdar Mehmood rejected these claims and wrote that the book by Ahmad Saleem was controversial since Jinnah would never be frank enough with bureaucrats to consult with them on matters of politics. According to him, there was no possibility of Iskandar Mirza advising Jinnah on political affairs. On these grounds, Safdar Mehmood concluded that it was a baseless claim made by Ahmad Saleem.
Rejecting the second source given by Dr Mubarak Ali, ‘The Sound of Fury’ written by Matlub ul-Hassan, Safdar Mehmood has written that he contacted Sharif al-Mujahid, the best friend of Matlub ul-Hassan, and Sharif said that Matlub ul-Hassan had never written any book by this name.
The two historians have cited secondhand sources and they weren’t eyewitness to the freedom movement. It is up to the future generations how they view the claims made by two of the most eminent historians of Pakistan.