As a child, I spent a considerable amount of time on Aibak Road. This small thorough fare is a link between Anarkali Bazar and Mayo Hospital Road. Here, there used to be a dilapidated tomb of Qutab-ud-Din Aibak: once the emperor of India, who died in the city while playing a Polo match. The road carried his name but his grave was abandoned. It was in the 70’s during the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto regime that a mausoleum was built in his memory and then in the 80’s, the Polo Club honored him by installing a portrait with a caption below: “It is in this city that the emperor of India fell while playing Polo and then departed for his heavenly abode.” Zia-ul-Haq was so impressed by this tribute that he claimed to be a Polo player himself, which he never was.
The Hospital Road covers the periphery of the boundary wall of the famous Mayo Hospital and its attached Kind Edward Medical College (now university). All along the wall, there used to be outdoor photo studios that catered to the needs of the general public while the posher clientele was covered by shops on the Mall.
Though Aibak road is named after the emperor, it has also produced a very proud son of the soil called Khawaja Muhammad Rafique who owned a small printing press there. Khawaja Sahib was an honest and pious individual and a principled politician. He contested elections and by-elections from Lahore and stood up against the hegemony of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). Though his political views were right of centre, his bold defiance was well respected. Rozi Khan, the undisputed leader of Anarkali who is still a staunch comrade of the left today, never saw eye to eye with him but praised his principled politics.
There was a public rally on the Mall against the conduct of by-elections in the 70’s. Ghulam Mustafa Khar was the governor and Pervez Masud the Deputy Commissioner of Lahore. Khawaja Sahib was returning home after the procession when he was gunned down behind the Assembly Hall near Islamia College for girls on Cooper Road. The administration was blamed for his murder. There was a huge public funeral on the Mall on December 22, 1972, which all kinds of people attended. As a progressive student leader, I too led a delegation to bid farewell to a leader who laid down his life for principled politics.
The family fell on hard times. Khawaja Saad Rafique was still in school. Mrs. Khawaja Rafique had to shoulder the family responsibilities. She sought guidance and was helped by Pervez Masud, the DC. Finally, the political mantle was carried by her when she was elected a member of the Punjab Assembly in 1985. She upheld the traditions of austerity and the honesty of her husband, and often arrived at the Assembly building using public transport. Then came the big break; her eldest son Saad Rafique was elected to the Provincial Assembly in 1997 and there was no looking back. Today, the family rubs shoulders with the rich and the powerful. Saad’s younger brother Salman is a member of the Punjab Assembly and so is his wife.
A petition was filed against Khawaja Saad Rafique for amassing wealth much beyond his means. Khawaja Sahib’s reply was plain and simple: “prize bonds.” In other words, the fortunes of the Khawaja Empire are based on government prize bonds. Certainly, he is not the only politician to have become enormously wealthy through politics, but it is a great tragedy for Pakistan and the legacy of the Khawajas of Aibak Road. Khawaja Rafique was incorruptible; he did not indulge in amassing wealth by supporting despots and finally laid down his life for his principles. I salute him for his efforts and struggle, but have his children lived up to his legacy?
A trip down the memory lane of Anarkali-Aibak road is indeed a sad affair. Rozi Khan the comrade still sits on the pavement near Paisa Akhbar and works to earn his living. He lives in a rented portion of an old building with his family. Despite age, his spirits are high and he is willing to struggle for the well being of the common man. Aibak’s moseleum is still there but the Khawajas and their legacy has moved to greener pastures.
For the comrades of change, the struggle continues. In the 60’s while we were still in school, we forced a despot to step down followed by free and fair elections in 1970. Our mandate was hijacked in 1977 and all the elections that followed, but we did not give up. In 2007, we challenged the might of the fourth usurper and elections were held in 2008 followed by a democratic transition in 2013. By stuffing the ballot boxes, our struggle for real democracy was again hijacked by the off-shoots of the man who laid down his life for it.
So blatant was the conduct of the Khawaja clan that there was a spontaneous dharna first at Lalak Chowk and then Defence Chowk in DHA. The ‘Kaptan’ was confined to his hospital bed with no clear direction for the young protestors. I had the chance of meeting some of them; first time voters felt cheated of their right to elect their leaders, and for us it was the signal of the continuing struggle for democracy. And so once again, on August 14, 2014, we marched with the ‘Kaptan’ hoping to bring Pakistan back to its truest democratic path. A Naya Pakistan; with new leaders and new legacies.
The writer is ex-chairman, Pakistan Science Foundation.
fmaliks@hotmail.com