January 20 marks the death anniversary of Abdul Ghaffar Khan, lovingly called Bacha Khan, the 20th-century leader of the Pashtuns, who himself was a Pashtun from the North-West Frontier Province, now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
An ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi, Abdul Ghaffar Khan, known for his non-violent opposition and adherence to pacifism, later came to be known as “Frontier Gandhi”.
He was arrested several times by the Pakistani government. Been loggerheads with the British, what treatment Bacha Khan received from the Pakistani authorities is what we couldn’t even describe in words.
Despite facing much opposition and obstacles he worked tirelessly to raise the consciousness of his fellow Pashtuns. He also worked with an aim to ensure social upliftment of the Pashtuns who had remained backwards due to lack of education.
A Muslim by religion, Bacha Khan always advocated for Hindu-Muslim unity in the Indian subcontinent and stood strongly opposed to the idea of the Partition of India.
He, a Pashtun independence activist, founded the Khudai Khhidmatgar Movement in 1929, commonly known as the “Red Shirts” (Surkh Posh), the success of which even earned him and his supporters a crackdown from the British Rule. Indian National Congress’ acceptance of the partition plan was a real shocker for Khan which he called a betrayal at the hands of Jawaharlal Nehru.
While under house arrest, Khan died in Peshawar in 1988. Such was his influence on the Pashtuns that a cease-fire was announced during the Afghan Civil War for people to be allowed to attend his funeral and in 1987, he became the first non - Indian citizen to be awarded India's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna.
About Channel:
New Delhi Times is an International Newspaper which provides you with the comprehensive up-to-date news coverage from all over India and World. Get the latest top stories, current affairs, sports, business, entertainment, politics, astrology, spirituality.
[ Ссылка ]
Social Media Handles:
Facebook: [ Ссылка ]
Twitter: [ Ссылка ]
New Delhi Times - E-Paper - PDF Edition (Weekly Edition) click below
[ Ссылка ]
